CW on Episode Count and Scheduling Plans for Legends of Tomorrow, The 100: Season 3 and Containment
Network president Mark Pedowitz on how they're planning their midseason series.
11 Aug 2015 By Eric Goldman
The CW only programs ten hours of TV a week, which can make scheduling an interesting challenge. This coming season, with the network renewing nearly their entire lineup from the previous year, things could potentially get extra tricky midseason – especially if all of their fall series get a full 22 episodes (or more), when the question becomes how they program their midseason series, including the new Arrow/Flash spinoff
DC's Legends of Tomorrow,
Containment and the third season of
The 100.
I asked CW Mark Pedowitz this question Tuesday at the TCA Press Tour during his executive session, and though he couldn’t give details for midseason shows yet, he did say, “We have thought about it. We know exactly what we're going to do. We kind of have a rough idea of when we're going to launch Legends of Tomorrow and Containment and 100, but we know that certain shows, they have to take breaks in between. We pretty much know how the schedule's going to play itself out, give or take.”
When I asked Pedowitz if he was saying some of the fall series may go on midseason breaks to let the other shows air in the interim -- much like ABC does with Agents of SHIELD and Agent Carter -- he replied, “That is correct. It is conceivable.”
After the executive session, I also was able to ask Pedowitz if he could clarify exactly how many episodes the midseason series will have, which has been a bit unclear. He revealed Containment will have 13 episodes, while The 100 will have 16 – the same as it did for Season 2. This was actually a bit of a surprise, as there were some reports earlier this summer that The 100 would have 13 episodes this year.
As for Legends of Tomorrow, which begins filming in a few weeks, Pedowitz said the exact episode number still has to be determined.
Pedowitz also said that
iZombie, back for Season 2, currently had a 13-episode order but, as with the new CW fall series
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, a full 22-episode order was possible.
CW on Episode Count and Scheduling Plans for Legends of Tomorrow, The 100: Season 3 and Containment - IGN