Are Chuck Lorre’s days on broadcast television coming to an end?
On Wednesday, CBS announced that its Lorre-produced comedy Bob Hearts Abishola will end with its upcoming fifth season, with the series finale set for May 13.
The comedy starring Billy Gardell and Folake Olowofoyeku joins fellow Lorre-produced series Young Sheldon in coming to a close in 2024. With the conclusion of both shows next year, broadcast comedy kingpin Lorre will have gone from having a two-hour block of four shows on CBS to zero on broadcast. The brains behind broadcast hits including Two and a Half Men, Cybill and scores of others next has his Max comedy Bookie debuting this week and is readying another spinoff from Big Bang Theory for the Warner Bros. Discovery-backed platform.
“Bob Hearts Abishola is about an unlikely love story, but also the premise that immigrants make America great,” said executive producers Gina Yashere, Matt Ross and Lorre. “We’ve loved bringing these stories to life and are excited for fans to see the final chapter of these two families, and the incredible work of this talented cast and crew.”
Season five of Bob Hearts Abishola, which like all Lorre creations hails from his longtime home at Warner Bros. Television, has already gone through a budget crunch that saw castmembers outside of its two leads reduced from series regulars to recurring as broadcast and streaming shows alike reduce budgets amid the industrywide contraction.
“We are so proud to call Bob Hearts Abishola a CBS comedy as it helped establish a new generation of programming at the network,” said Amy Reisenbach, president of CBS Entertainment. “This series expertly showcased a family love story and workplace comedy about the immigrant experience with heartfelt humor and emotion while also authentically portraying Nigerian culture. It’s a testament to the incomparable Chuck Lorre, the amazing creative team led by Al Higgins, Gina Yashere and Matt Ross, and the talents of Billy Gardell, Folake Olowofoyeku and the entire cast for making this show and its characters come to life and resonate with viewers. We plan to celebrate it this spring and give fans the most amazing episodes to remember it by.”
Bob Hearts Abishola launched as the No. 1 new comedy in the 2019-20 season. CBS says no other comedy on ABC, NBC or Fox has delivered more viewers than the show, which alongside The Neighborhood ranks as the top two shows among Black viewers.
Young Sheldon and Bob Hearts Abishola are the only two shows on the network’s roster of scripted originals that CBS does not either outright own or co-produce as Warner remains steadfast in keeping Lorre productions wholly owned. Both shows join CBS dramas Blue Bloods and SWAT in coming to a close in 2024. The latter two series also experienced budget reductions, with the cast of the Tom Selleck procedural taking a 25 percent hit to keep the show on the air and hundreds employed.
Other shows ending on broadcast next year include The CW’s Superman & Lois, NBC’s LaBrea and Magnum P.I. Keep up with what’s new, renewed, canceled and ending with THR’s handy scorecard.
