Skip to main content

NBC Picks Up Chuck for 24-Episode Full Season (And, yes, Picks Up Chase Too)

No couch-lock here: NBC has picked up action-comedy Chuck for a full season.

Yes, it's official: the Peacock has indicated that Chuck's current fourth season will get its back nine episodes plus an additional two, bringing this season's total to 24 installments. The series had initially been renewed this season for just 13 episodes.

The news comes significantly earlier than last season, when the show's writers had completed a 13-episode arc (it launched in January rather than September) before receiving word of a back-nine pickup, leading to a mini-season in which Chuck and Sarah became a full-blown couple.

Chase has introduced an appealing new star to television audiences in Kelli Giddish and we think it has potential to grow,” said Angela Bromstad, President, Primetime Entertainment, NBC and Universal Media Studios, in a statement. “We also are glad that Chuck will be with us for a full season delivering its loyal, passionate audience.” [Editor: Bromstad seems to have forgotten about Past Life, clearly.]

In other news, NBC also picked up a full season of Jerry Bruckheimer's procedural drama Chase and ordered four additional scripts for J.J. Abrams and Josh Reims' espionage dramedy Undercovers.

So, Chuck fans: are you excited about the full season? And that the writers will be able to plan accordingly this time? Head to the comments section to discuss.

The full press release from NBC can be found below.

NBC ORDERS FULL-SEASON PICKUPS FOR NEW DRAMA ‘CHASE’ AND FOR RETURNING ‘CHUCK’

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. – October 19, 2010 – NBC has given full-season pickups to the new high-octane drama “Chase” and the returning action-comedy “Chuck” for 2010-11. The announcement was made by Angela Bromstad, President, Primetime Entertainment, NBC and Universal Media Studios.

“‘Chase’ has introduced an appealing new star to television audiences in Kelli Giddish and we think it has potential to grow,” said Bromstad. “We also are glad that ‘Chuck’ will be with us for a full season delivering its loyal, passionate audience.”

“Chase” is averaging a 2.0 rating, 5 share in adults 18-49 and 6.5 million viewers overall in “most current” averages through its first five telecasts this fall. "Chase" has captured an 18 percent improvement in the time period versus year-ago "most current" results for NBC in 18-49 rating (with a 2.0 rating vs. a 1.7) and a 23 percent gain in total viewers (6.5 million vs. 5.3 million). "Chase" is heavily time-shifted, adding 21 percent to its "live plus same day" 18-49 rating when Nielsen issued "live plus seven day" results for the opening two weeks of the season (to a 2.66 rating from a 2.19).

Through October 18, “Chuck” has averaged a 2.2 rating, 6 share in adults 18-49 and 5.9 million viewers overall in "most current" averages from Nielsen Media Research. “Chuck” is heavily time-shifted, adding 29 percent to its "live plus same day" 18-49 rating when Nielsen issued "live plus seven day" results for the opening two weeks of the season (to a 2.56 rating from a 1.99).”

“Chase” (Mondays, 10-11 p.m. ET) -- from Emmy Award-winning executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer (“CSI” franchise, “The Amazing Race,” “Pirates of the Caribbean”) and executive producer Jennifer Johnson ("Cold Case," "Reunion," "Lost") -- is a lightning-fast drama that showcases an elite team of U.S. Marshals that hunts down America's most dangerous fugitives. Kelli Giddish (“Past Life”) stars as U.S. Marshal Annie Frost, a deputy whose sharp mind and unique Texas upbringing help her track down violent criminals on the run. Also starring are Cole Hauser (“K-Ville”), Amaury Nolasco (“Prison Break”) and Rose Rollins (“The L Word”). Jesse Metcalfe (“Desperate Housewives”) also stars.

“Chase” is produced by Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Jerry Bruckheimer Television and Warner Bros. Television. Bruckheimer, Jonathan Littman (“CSI” franchise, “The Amazing Race,” "Cold Case”) and Johnson are as executive producers, while KristieAnne Reed is the co-executive producer.

“Chuck” (Mondays, 8-9 p.m. ET) stars Zachary Levi ("Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel") as Chuck Bartowksi, a regular guy who also happens to be the government’s most vital secret agent. The cast also includes Adam Baldwin ("My Bodyguard") as Colonel John Casey and Yvonne Strahovski (the upcoming "The Killer Elite") as partner Sarah Walker. Also starring are: Joshua Gomez ("Without a Trace"), Sarah Lancaster ("What About Brian?"), Ryan McPartlin ("Living with Fran"), Mark Christopher Lawrence ("The Pursuit of Happyness"), Vik Sahay ("Time Bomb"), Scott Krinsky ("The O.C.") and Bonita Friedericy ("The West Wing").

"Chuck" is co-created by Josh Schwartz ("The O.C.," "Gossip Girl") and Chris Fedak, and is executive-produced by Schwartz, McG ("Charlie's Angels," "Terminator Salvation"), Fedak, Robert Duncan McNeill, and Nicholas Wootton. "Chuck" is produced by Fake Empire, Wonderland Sound and Vision, in association with Warner Bros. Television.

Comments

Anonymous said…
SO EXCITED! chuck definitely deserves the full season. i am really looking forward to to what the writers will come up with in the back 11! and i hope theres an episode about sarah's past!
happy chuck day everyone!!!!! :)
Samantha said…
Great news! Especially after the episode last night, which was my favorite so far this season. With all the sub-par new fall shows, it's good that Chuck is still great and that NBC is sticking with it too.
ted23 said…
YES!!!!!!! Best news all week!
Chris L said…
I'm glad, but...why the extra episodes? Does this mean that this season is Chuck's last?
Anonymous said…
This is extremely good news. Thanks, Jace.
JD said…
WOW! Fantastic news...not only the back-9, but an additional 2 episodes to round out Season 4! Congratulations to the cast and crew of "Chuck"...it's awesome that your dedication and love for your show has been rewarded!
liz said…
love chuck! best show ever..
Stewart said…
I also love to Watch Chuck. it's mind blowing comedy show.

Popular posts from this blog

Have a Burning Question for Team Darlton, Matthew Fox, Evangeline Lilly, or Michael Emerson?

Lost fans: you don't have to make your way to the island via Ajira Airways in order to ask a question of the creative team or the series' stars. Televisionary is taking questions from fans to put to Lost 's executive producers/showrunners Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse and stars Matthew Fox ("Jack Shephard"), Evangeline Lilly ("Kate Austen"), and Michael Emerson ("Benjamin Linus") for a series of on-camera interviews taking place this weekend. If you have a specific question for any of the above producers or actors from Lost , please leave it in the comments section below . I'll be accepting questions until midnight PT tonight and, while I can't promise I'll be able to ask any specific inquiry due to the brevity of these on-camera interviews, I am looking for some insightful and thought-provoking questions to add to the mix. So who knows: your burning question might get asked after all.

What's Done is Done: The Eternal Struggle Between Good and Evil on the Season Finale of "Lost"

Every story begins with thread. It's up to the storyteller to determine just how much they need to parcel out, what pattern they're making, and when to cut it short and tie it off. With last night's penultimate season finale of Lost ("The Incident, Parts One and Two"), written by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, we began to see the pattern that Lindelof and Cuse have been designing towards the last five seasons of this serpentine series. And it was only fitting that the two-hour finale, which pushes us on the road to the final season of Lost , should begin with thread, a loom, and a tapestry. Would Jack follow through on his plan to detonate the island and therefore reset their lives aboard Oceanic Flight 815 ? Why did Locke want to kill Jacob? What caused The Incident? What was in the box and just what lies in the shadow of the statue? We got the answers to these in a two-hour season finale that didn't quite pack the same emotional wallop of previous season ...

In Defense of Downton Abbey (Or, Don't Believe Everything You Read)

The proof of the pudding, as they say, is in the eating. Which means, if I can get on my soapbox for a minute, that in order to judge something, one ought to experience it first hand. One can't know how the pudding has turned out until one actually tastes it. I was asked last week--while I was on vacation with my wife--for an interview by a journalist from The Daily Mail, who got in touch to talk to me about PBS' upcoming launch of ITV's period drama Downton Abbey , which stars Hugh Bonneville, Dame Maggie Smith, Dan Stevens, Elizabeth McGovern, and a host of others. (It launches on Sunday evening as part of PBS' Masterpiece Classic ; my advance review of the first season can be read here , while my interview with Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes and stars Dan Stevens and Hugh Bonneville can be read here .) Normally, I would have refused, just based on the fact that I was traveling and wasn't working, but I love Downton Abbey and am so enchanted with the proj...