CBS is expanding two of its signature reality franchises: “Survivor” and “The Amazing Race” permanently to 90-minute episodes next season, the network announced Thursday morning as it unveiled its 2023-2024 TV lineup .
The Eye network went first with its fall plans, but there’s one caveat to that: The writers’ strike means it’s very possible that primetime won’t look quite like this come September. And indeed, CBS already has contingency plans in place, including several unscripted series.
But for now, CBS will head into the fall with a primetime schedule that looks nearly identical to its current one. Wednesdays switched to just “Survivor” and “The Amazing Race,” for example, the current 10 p.m. resident, taking the canceled “True Lies” out of the equation. Last fall, CBS opened the season with three reality shows on the night: “Survivor,” “The Real Love Boat” and “The Amazing Race,” so an all-reality Wednesday isn’t unusual. (Neither are the expanded 90-minute versions of “Survivor” or “The Amazing Race,” but until now those were reserved for special moments, like premieres and finals.)
Among other changes, a new drama starring Carrie Preston and based on her “The Good Wife”/”The Good Fight” character will air Thursdays at 10 p.m. following the return of “Elsbeth”, “Young Sheldon” and “Ghosts”. As well as the comedy drama “So Help Me Todd.”
It moved the current Thursday night 10 p.m. series “CSI: Vegas” to Sunday nights at 10 p.m., but with a twist. Because CBS often suffers Sunday night NFL football overruns, sometimes pushing the last show of the night to the local news hour of 11 p.m., this fall repeats the 10-eye (or nothing, if the game is on the air). runs very late) pm slot. “CSI: Vegas” will return when football is mostly over.
For the rest of the night, CBS has made it 1988 again through science or magic. That’s because the night will revive a pair of I’s “Matlock” and “The Equalizer” back-to-back. “Matlock,” starring Kathy Bates in the role originally made famous by Andy Griffith, is brand new and will take advantage of being sandwiched between “60 Minutes” and Queen Latifah’s “The Equalizer.”
“The Equalizer” moves to 9 p.m. in that scenario, competing with the canceled “East New York,” while current 10 p.m. series “NCIS: Los Angeles” is being retired.
Thanks to last-minute dealmaking that saved “SWAT” for a final season and sent “East New York” to the East River, it’s up for scheduling changes. Monday remains the same with “The Neighborhood,” “Bob Hearst Abishola,” “NCIS” and “NCIS Hawaii.” Dick Wolf remains on Tuesdays with “FBI,” “FBI: International” and “FBI: Most Wanted.” And then on Friday the “SWAT”/”Fire Country”/”Blue Bloods” vibe of first responders continues, for now.
Wings in Waiting: The new comedy “Poppa’s House,” starring Damon Wayans and Damon Wayans Jr. in a multi-generational family loafer. And then there’s “Tracker,” which will get a post-Super Bowl time slot on Sunday, February 11, 2024, immediately after the big game. After that, we’ll see where the Justin Hartley series could land.
Because once again, this year’s network upfront announcements have remained largely on paper. Its reality will depend on many factors, including how long the strike lasts.
Each network has its own contingency plans; At CBS, that may include a mix of repeats (procedurals like “NCIS” still do well in reruns, just ask Netflix), as well as “new to you” shows from CBS studios that previously aired on Paramount+ ( was aired on “Star Trek”) Night, Anyone?), international acquisitions and unscripted rentals.
In the reality department, CBS has plenty on the shelf that it could bring to the fore this fall if scripted shows don’t pan out. It includes new seasons of “Tough as Nails” and “Lingo” as well as primetime versions of “The Price is Right” and “Let’s Make a Deal.” Also ordered: “Buddy Games” and “Loteria Loca.” CBS also has a “Big Brother” machine.
It also unveils the first schedule for new CBS Entertainment president Amy Reisenbach, who took over the division last fall. And it’s a little bitter: For the first time in decades, CBS (and parent Paramount Global) opted not to reveal its schedule during Upfront Week at Carnegie Hall in New York. Instead, there were plans to celebrate at a Los Angeles party this week — until the strike postponed those plans.
Nonetheless, Reisenbach had a strong message for advertisers: CBS’s sustainability. “Along with our outstanding team at the network, I am incredibly excited to present four new series with big-name talent portraying different, bold, engaging characters,” she said in a statement. “These new shows under the auspices of the marquee capture everything our viewers love about a CBS series – unique personalities, suspenseful drama, intrigue, high stakes, and relatable laugh-out-loud comedy with heart and humor . The new additions to our lineup are a great complement to our winning slate of comeback series and we are confident that they will resonate with our audiences across broadcast and streaming platforms.
CBS is promoting its 15th consecutive season as the No. 1 network in viewers, adding to its previous streak between 1955 and 1970. According to its research, as of April 30, the network averaged 5.97 million viewers in front of NBC’s 5.39 million viewers.
Here’s CBS’s Fall 2023 schedule:
monday
“The Neighborhood” at 8 p.m.
“Bob Hurts Abishola” at 8:30 pm
“NCIS” at 9 p.m.
“NCIS Hawaii” at 10 p.m.
Tuesday
“FBI” at 8 p.m.
“FBI: International” at 9 p.m.
“FBI: Most Wanted” at 10 p.m.
Wednesday
“Survivor” at 8 p.m.
“The Amazing Race” at 9:30 p.m.
Thursday
“Young Sheldon” at 8 p.m.
“Ghost” at 8:30 p.m.
“So Help Me Todd” at 9 p.m.
“Elsbeth” (new drama) at 10 p.m.
Friday
“SWAT” at 8 p.m.
“Fire Country” at 9 p.m.
“Blue Bloods” at 10 p.m.
Saturday
repeats at 8 p.m.
repeats at 9 p.m.
10 p.m. “48 Hours”
sunday
“60 Minutes” at 7 p.m.
“Matlock” (New Drama) at 8 p.m.
“The Equalizer” at 9 p.m.
Repeats/”CSI: Vegas” at 10 p.m. (after football)
And here’s the first look at the trailers for the new fall series ‘Elsbeth’ and ‘Matlock’:
