When Will You Know If Your Favorite Broadcast TV Show Is Canceled Or Renewed?

The week prior to the network ad upfront events is #ReaperWeek, when the remaining news of renewals and cancellations comes out. Most news should appear between Wednesday-Saturday, May 8-11, 2024. By Saturday, May 11, 2024 all the news should be out.

The ad upfront meetings the following week focus on the new shows and schedules for next Fall, not their existing shows. Little or nothing is learned about existing shows at the ad upfront meetings except scheduling.

In very rare instances, news for existing shows may come after the upfront meetings. For example:

• One Rules Of Engagement renewal wasn’t announced until after the CBS upfront, because the contract negotiations ran long.

• CBS canceled Unforgettable prior to their upfront meeting and then un-canceled it well after their upfront when Sony made them an offer they couldn’t refuse.

• NBC canceled Timeless and then un-canceled it after Sony made them an offer they couldn’t refuse (are you seeing a pattern with Sony shows?).

At a minimum, the ad upfront events bring news of next season’s schedule and new shows for the broadcast networks. What news will come from the streaming companies? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Ad Upfront Events, 2024

Monday, May 13

• NBC

  If recent history repeats itself, NBC should release their new Fall schedule the day before, on the morning of Sunday, May 12.

• Fox

Tuesday, May 14

• ABC/Disney

• Amazon

Wednesday, May 15

• Not CBS

  Traditionally, this would be the day CBS would have its upfront event. CBS stopped doing an event last year, but they did release their schedule, so that’s likely again this year.

• Netflix

• Warner Bros. Discovery

Thursday, May 16

• Not CW

  Under the previous owners, Thursday is the day that CW would hold its upfront event. Under the new owners, there was no event in 2023, but they did announce their next season’s schedule. Likely that happens again.

Of course, if you follow the reaper’s predictions you’ll be pretty sure to know most show’s fates well in advance of these dates.

Cable networks also have advertising upfront events spread throughout March, April and May, and while they often announce new shows at them, they aren’t a deadline for all renewal and cancellation news to be revealed like they are for the broadcast network upfronts.