THE BRIDGE: MIA on the 2010 CBS lineup

There was a ‘TCA Winter 2010 Press Tour’ today and here are some articles discussing the same thing we were talking about the other day about there being no sign of The Bridge on the new CBS schedule.

Depending on which article you read below, they are saying that Nina Tassler (CBS Entertainment President) said that “summer is a possibility” or she’s saying it “will make it to air at some point”.

 


 

No sign of Toronto-shot police drama ‘Flashpoint’ in CBS’s lineup
By: Bill Brioux (The Canadian Press)
Date: January 9, 2010

Canadians waiting for CBS to finally add Toronto-lensed dramas “The Bridge” and “Flashpoint” to its schedule will have to wait a little longer.

CBS announced Saturday at the winter TV press tour that “Miami Medical,” a new series about a Florida trauma facility, will be getting the Friday night time slot in place of “Numb3rs” starting April 2.

CBS had programmed “Flashpoint” in that Friday night time slot last year before shelving the series, which has been a hit in Canada ever since it premiered on CTV.

“The Bridge,” about a combative police union boss, is another CTV/CBS collaboration that was developed back when the writers strike sent U.S. networks scrambling across the border in search of content.

CBS entertainment president Nina Tassler said the fact that “The Bridge” missed this latest chance to join her schedule is simply a factor of CBS having “more content then we had real estate for.” She says CBS has 18 episodes of “Flashpoint” and 13 episodes of “The Bridge” to draw on when a time slot opens up.

There is still no CBS debut date for either show, although Tassler said that a summer run for both shows was a possibility. She also said “Numb3rs” could still return to the schedule next season despite the fact that the network cut back on its episode order for 2009-10.

 

Source: Yahoo! Canada News

 


 

Snippet from Entertainment Weekly …

Tassler didn’t beat around the bush when she answered a question about whether the organ transplant drama Three Rivers has been officially cancelled. “Unfortunately we’ve all known each other long enough that when something is on hiatus, its code for something else.” But she acknowledged the network still has plenty of new series to program, including 18 more episodes of the actioner Flashpoint and 13 episodes of the new drama The Bridge, an Aaron Douglas starrer about a cop-cum-union rep. “We had a terrific fall launch,” she said. “A lot of our shows are working so we had more content than we had real estate.”

Source: EW.com

 


 

Snippet from TV addict …

In fact, things have been going so well for the network (With of course the notable exception of the whole pesky ‘Charlie Sheen’ criminal issue which Tassler promises won’t affect TWO AND A HALF MEN) that their only problem is a ‘high class’ one. Translation: The network’s schedule is too solid. Which is bad news for the 18 episodes of FLASHPOINT and 13 episodes of the Aaron Douglas (BATTLESTAR GALACTICA) vehicle THE BRIDGE that are anxiously waiting to see the light of day. Not to mention, the future of MEDIUM and NUMB3RS, whose futures remain murky, even though Tassler was quick to point out are both “absolutely still under consideration” for next season.

Source: TV addict

 


 

Snippet from TV Guide Canada …

In fact, CBS is seeing so much success, according to Tassler, that they have a “high class problem.” Unfortunately for Canadians, this means that the Eye’s current schedule is so tight, there is no room for two Canadian series waiting air time: Flashpoint and freshman series The Bridge.

While Tassler says that the existing 18 episodes of Flashpoint (which have already aired in Canada) and 13 episodes of The Bridge will air, they will “Wait and see what happens.”

Source: TV Guide.ca

 


 

Snippet from IF Magazine …

“Our strategy is to always look ahead,” says Tassler. “We’re thinking not just this season, but future seasons. We’ll be shooting as many pilots as previous years. You can’t be complacent. You have to stay competitive in terms of looking forward.”

With the success of so many of their new shows, it’s also left the return of FLASHPOINT (which they have 18 episodes in the can) and the new show THE BRIDGE up in the air until a time slot opens up.

“We had a high class problem this season and a terrific fall launch,” she says. “A lot of shows that were working, we had more content and not a lot of real estate for it. Right now, the schedule is stable and doing well.”

Source: iFMagazine.com

 


 

UPDATE (January 10, 2010): More articles …..

 

Snippet from Toronto Sun …

CBS president Nina Tassler refuses to set a wedding date for her network’s extended engagement with CTV series Flashpoint and The Bridge.

Despite having the rights to 18 more episodes of Flashpoint and 13 episodes of yet-to-be-seen The Bridge, Tassler claims her network simply has “more content than we had real estate for.”

Tassler added, “We had a high-class problem this season. We had a terrific fall launch. We had a lot of shows that were working. So we’ll wait and see what happens.

“We’ve got both (Flashpoint and The Bridge) and obviously they’ll make it to air at some point. But right now, the schedule is stable and doing well.”

Hmmm, that’s a pretty non-committal commitment. Nina, you tease!

Yet another hospital show, Miami Medical from the Jerry Bruckheimer stable, will join the CBS schedule on Friday, April 2, yanking a slot that otherwise might have gone to one of the two Canadian shows.

Source: Toronto Sun

 


 

Snippet from Premium Hollywood …

Fans of the network’s Canadian imports, “Flashpoint” and “The Bridge,” will be pleased to know that CBS is sitting on 18 and 13 episodes of those series, respectively. They will be less pleased, however, to learn that it’s not yet confirmed when we’ll actually see any of them. “We had a high-class problem this season: we had a terrific fall launch, we had a lot of shows that we’re working, so we had more content than we had real estate for,” she admitted. “So we’ll wait and see what happens. We’ve got both shows, and obviously, they’ll make it to air at some point, but right now, the schedule is stable and doing well. Like I said, it’s a high-class problem.”

Source: Premium Hollywood