What happened to Merlin on NBC?

[AviTrek]

NBC bought the rights to Merlin, they even have a short blurb on their website, but they still haven't announced when it will air. At first I just assumed it would be a midseason replacement, but now it looks like it will be a summer show at the earliest.

Does NBC have any intention to air Merlin or did they just want to keep the show away from BBCA?

 

[Siwilliams]

NBC bought the rights to Merlin, they even have a short blurb on their website, but they still haven't announced when it will air. At first I just assumed it would be a midseason replacement, but now it looks like it will be a summer show at the earliest.

Does NBC have any intention to air Merlin or did they just want to keep the show away from BBCA?

They aired Merlin back in 1998 then repeated it in it in 1998, 1999 and 2000

 

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

They aired Merlin back in 1998 then repeated it in it in 1998, 1999 and 2000

AviTrek is referring to the new BBC series Merlin (which NBC picked up to air in the US), not the mini-series Merlin from 10 years ago.

 

[Siwilliams]

They aired Merlin back in 1998 then repeated it in it in 1998, 1999 and 2000

AviTrek is referring to the new BBC series Merlin (which NBC picked up to air in the US), not the mini-series Merlin from 10 years ago.

Had no idea there was a series

 

[wamdue]

it is quite a good series, the S1 finale is on BBC this saturday, why NBC is not showing it I have no idea.

 

[Siwilliams]

it is quite a good series, the S1 finale is on BBC this saturday, why NBC is not showing it I have no idea.

How many episodes have there been?

 

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

How many episodes have there been?

It's a 13-episode season.

 

[Siwilliams]

How many episodes have there been?

It's a 13-episode season.

damn!

NBS will probably show it midseason then

 

[roguephoenix]

merlin was always intended for a 2009 release on nbc. they need to finish airing it in the uk before airing it here.

 

[AviTrek]

Right, between finishing on BBC and only being 13 episodes it was intended as a midseason show. But NBC has now announced their 2009 schedule and Merlin is no where to be seen.

 

[Siwilliams]

Right, between finishing on BBC and only being 13 episodes it was intended as a midseason show. But NBC has now announced their 2009 schedule and Merlin is no where to be seen.

Was Knight Rider on the list? Maybe since it has been cancelled it will replace that?

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Are there going to be more episodes of Merlin? If not, NBC probably wants to use all available midseason timeslots for a show that will be an ongoing thing, if it becomes a decent hit and doesn't end up cancelled like everything they try. The way NBC is going, they've got to try for every hit they can. A show that's 13 eps and goodbye is a waste of a perfectly good timeslot. They'll burn it off on Saturday nights or during the summer.

 

[roguephoenix]

Right, between finishing on BBC and only being 13 episodes it was intended as a midseason show. But NBC has now announced their 2009 schedule and Merlin is no where to be seen.

i bet they'll do it in the summer since it's only 13. fall at the latest.

 

[Siwilliams]

Ratings might be good in the Summer

 

[diankra]

Are there going to be more episodes of Merlin? If not, NBC probably wants to use all available midseason timeslots for a show that will be an ongoing thing, if it becomes a decent hit and doesn't end up cancelled like everything they try. The way NBC is going, they've got to try for every hit they can. A show that's 13 eps and goodbye is a waste of a perfectly good timeslot. They'll burn it off on Saturday nights or during the summer.

The British press is reporting that it's confirmed for a second run today. And of course, NBC knew when they bought it that it'd only have a 13 episode season each year, but that seemed to fit with the strategy they seemed to be goign with of splitting the year into three 'mini-seasons', with some series only running for one of them, others for two or three. That seems to have been messed up a bit by NBC turning January into Reality TV Month, of course.

 

[Deckerd]

The gossip is that the cast are all signed up for at least one more season, including Anthony Head, apart from Richard Wilson. He'll probably be there but I think he likes to keep his options open.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

They're still working on dubbing the soundtrack with American voice actors and hip hop soundtrack.

 

[AviTrek]

Are there going to be more episodes of Merlin? If not, NBC probably wants to use all available midseason timeslots for a show that will be an ongoing thing, if it becomes a decent hit and doesn't end up cancelled like everything they try. The way NBC is going, they've got to try for every hit they can. A show that's 13 eps and goodbye is a waste of a perfectly good timeslot. They'll burn it off on Saturday nights or during the summer.

When NBC bought the rights they knew it was 13 episodes/season and they were dependent on the BBC for new seasons. Also, at this point airing 13 episodes they already paid for is cheaper than producing 13 episodes of a random reality show. Not to mention this could get good ratings for NBC. I wonder if the experience with Crusoe has soured NBC on trying any more British imports.

 

[wamdue]

Crusoe was not a British import, at least not one im aware of anyways

a second season seems to be confirmed, by ASH saying there will be one.

 

[diankra]

The gossip is that the cast are all signed up for at least one more season, including Anthony Head, apart from Richard Wilson. He'll probably be there but I think he likes to keep his options open.

Richard Wilson seems to have been a last minut eaddition to the cast - he'd done a guest spot on a new ITV series called Demons (previously The Last Van Helsing) with the same production team, and enjoyed it enough to go over to Merlin, but possibly only on an episode-by-episode guest contract.

Re; Crusoe - it may be from a British company, but it's not been run anywhere in the UK as yet.