Fastest syndication EVER?
After only seven weeks on the air, syndication rights for NCIS: LA have been bought by USA Network, which has already had a great syndication run with the original NCIS.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, NCIS: LL Cool J LA is going for roughly $1.9 2.5 million per episode 
THR updated the story from their original report of 1.9 million).
The unusually quick deal is testament to the popularity of the “NCIS” brand — and the ability for top cable networks to capitalize on crime procedurals in syndication. In its seventh season, “NCIS” has grown to become the most-watched drama series on TV.
Update: Not quite as fast, but The Mentalist has been sold into syndication as well.
Not suprised USA picked it up so fast. NCIS is huge for them!
Well the series will inevitably be on for years. Since its part of a franchise NCIS LA is basically renewed for next season already. I can see the show being on for the next 5 years just like how CSI NY and CSI Miami are still on along with CSI. NCIS LA will be on for a while with NCIS. Not surprising in the least bit. And to think if CBS had never picked up JAG for a second year or NBC had renewed it, there would be no NCIS or NCIS LA.
something tells me that this show is staying around for a while
Wow that has to be the fastest show to go in syndication ever! I’m probably the only person on earth that dosent watch NCIS, but I do watch NCIS: LA, and I think this is a good move in USA Network’s part.
I’m surprised that we haven’t heard where is Brothers & Sisters will be in syndication.
this has to be a record.
“The spinoff is going for roughly $2.5 million per episode.”
x 24 eps. = $60 million per season
Does USA hand over about $240 million now or when they start airing the episodes in 2013?
J.R., there’s no way they are paying the whole thing up front. My guess is they locked a per episode price in now, but won’t actually pay for the episodes until they get them. Whether they pay for the full season at a time (or two full seasons as will be the case by 2011 when they can begin airing) as they get the rights to air or are on some sort of payment schedule I don’t know. I’d guess some sort of payment schedule, but it’s merely a guess.
To be clear, unless the article has been updated yet again while I typed this comment, they can begin airing in 2011, but won’t begin daily Mon-Fri airings until 2013.
B&S should be sold soon, maybe around the end of this season to lifetime. B&S seems like it will go on for a while also.
So, basically CBS is on the hook for at least four seasons. While I assume it would have stuck around anyway, I’m surprised they would commit to it so early. While it’s a decent performer, it’s not a ratings juggernaut or anything, and it could easily fail in the next few seasons.
How is CBS on the hook for the next four seasons? [NOTE: Just because they've signed a syndication deal with USA it would be contingent on the episodes being made] If the show plummets soon then CBS is unlikely to bring it back – however, it seems unlikely this will happen. This deal will only help the show if the show is looking marginal to come back for either s3 or 4. I would suggest though that this does mean that we’ll be seeing NCIS:LA for at least another 4 years! Just like GW and Medium will be locks to return next year due to their crazy syndication deals with Scifi and Lifetime respectably. I actually spoke to the woman who organised the GW deal (or someone involved with it) and she said that it worked out very well for CBS with the split distribution or however it works so there is quite a bit of money on the backend provided that CBS keeps the costs of the show down and the ratings hold up around a 2.0 – not to mention that it’s one of the only shows to be performing well on Friday!
Raymond, maybe this deal isn’t the same as other similar deals, but I know there have been syndication deals where the studio is promising X number of episodes will be made to fulfill the syndication deal.
Its almost 100% that the show will continue and last until syndication.
I think that CBS took into consideration that NCIS wasn’t the smash hit it is now when it started. USA repeats really helped it take off to where it is now, and CBS is taking the gamble that USA will do the same thing for NCIS LA. Even though LA isn’t a juggernaut, and I agree with Julia the show could take a downward turn, CBS and USA must see potential in the show and both were willing to take the gamble. And it’s not really a risk for CBS, even if the show only gets mediocre ratings, the syndication deal will keep it on the air.
What happens if the show doesn’t make it to 65 episodes?
does 2.5 million cover the per episode budget?
Tommy, I think the gamble for CBS is not that it will cost them money, but that it will drag their averages down. But I suppose they can always stick it on Fridays, if necessary, and hope for the best.
Where do you think Old Christine will end up in syndication?
Good for both the NCIS brand and USA Network. This won’t be a risk as crime dramas have proven to be valuable commodities in the cable industry. USA could have a very good solid character focus with off-net procedurals if they can add The Mentalist and Castle. Making USA the #1 destination on TV for viewers to get their repeat fix on procedurals.
CBS will have 2-4 years to get good repeat performances out of NCIS: LA. Probably the reason why The Mentalist isn’t on another network yet so CBS doesn’t lose those solid repeat ratings they get for it.
I think Christine will end up on either FX, TBS, or Lifetime. Since Christine hasn’t been seen by the masses just yet, I think the show will see a huge second life once it hits syndication.
Hot Pocket, you may have a future in PR.
” Since Christine hasn’t been seen by the masses just yet”, a very positive way of saying, “No one wanted to watch it on its initial broadcast run”.
What about nbc’s mercy? its on like 20 cable channels at night, almost every night.
^What, all 6 episodes are running over and over again on multiple channels? Are you perhaps mixing up Mercy and ER? Or MASH? Maybe Diagnosis Murder?
The only listed airings for reruns of Mercy are on Saturdays on NBC. At this point, it will be lucky to get a second season, nevermind syndication.
I have to laugh at what Bill just said. LOL!
Seriously though, most of these sitcoms have two different audiences those who watch it in its first-run airings and those who see it in their second-run airings on syndication or DVDs and stuff like that.
I hear from people all the time that they didn’t watch Men until it came on in syndication after 2006.
Friends is one of the few comedies in history to see an increase on the first-run network after entering syndication.
Think of the upside of ‘Til Death! No wonder Sony is desperate to get it out there to the masses.
I see what you’re saying Julia, but Friday’s would be a definite possibility if the shows rating do dip considering it has such a sweet syndication deal in place.
I’m one of those people who never watched two and a half men until was syndicated. I started watching CSI:NY and Bones in syndication too.
When was the last time a CBS police procedural didn’t last long enough for syndication?
THE UNIT is the most recent that i could think of.
22-24 episodes a year. They only need 4 seasons, next year guaranteed already.
If they stay in the current time slot, that’s almost a slam dunk. But maybe CBS might try and pull a Mentalist/Fringe and try to get this show to anchor say Sunday, and use the NCIS slot to start another police show next year.
Good for the NCIS Franchise
they’ll get more money
I’m happy for Chris O’Donnell. I liked him a lot back in the 90s and he’s had a rough time of it over the past 5-10 years. Now, if we can just get Christian Slater on a hit series or in a well-acted blockbuster movie….
What are the Production costs per Episode of NCIS?
Being as NCIS is the Number 1 show on TV probabally alot.
Could you give me a number?
@GSFABC,
No, we can’t give you a number. Production companies/networks are notoriously tight-lipped about episode costs. Occassionally we’ll hear about a particularly expensive pilot or episode, and there will be rumors that this or that show is more expensive than most, but we rarely get actual per-episode costs.
NCIS: LA isn’t as critically acclaimed as the original, less people are watching it than the original. I don’t get why syndicate it now?
The original is acclaimed? wow, that’s a new one.
NCIS LA is not half as good as the orginal.
I find the show to be very weak and the casting of LL Cool J to be a bad choice. I do not think the is a good actor which drags the show down. if the show last 4 years I will be suprised It is riding the coat tails of NCIS move the time slot and then check out the ratings
I think they would drop greatly. They need better scripts and better actors than LL Cool J
@GSFABC
I assume you mean total production costs, and if so, there’s no exact way of knowing it per episode, unless the studio or network tell you. But based on budgets for similar series, it’s safe to say:
NCIS is most definitely $4M+, on-par with 24 ($5M), Lost ($4.8), CSI ($4.5M)
and that NCIS:LA is probably between $3M to $4M, on-par with Grey’s Anatomy ($4M), Bones ($3.5M) and Stargate Universe ($3M).
Dillan, where did all those very precise cost numbers come from? Unless you are simultaneously an insider at CBS, ABC and Syfy, I call BS!
Strange considering it’s a timeslot hit. The Mentalist being sold I can get since it has demonstrated it can survive without the NCIS leadin but NCIS LA hasn’t yet.
Thanks Dillan.
Thats really expensive. I thought it would be way cheaper, because most of the time it’s set on the exact same sets every Episode. Plus the Actors are not too famous so they dont get much either.
@GSFABC
Industry secret: most television shows cost exactly the same to physically shoot, i.e. cost of crew, camera, stock, lighting, studio space, etc. It’s approximately $100,000 to $150,000 a day (this cost is referred to as “below-the-line” costs).
It’s the “above-the-line” costs (i.e. how much the studio pays its key creative talent) that make NCIS expensive. Because it’s the No. 1 show on television, the actors, writers, producers, directors, cinematographers, production designers, etc. all demand to be paid more. And the studio has no choice but to say yes, because they make shitloads from the show.
So basically, in terms of production values, NCIS and a show like Smallville (which costs $2M to make per ep) should be – on paper – no different. The “below-the-line” costs are pretty much the same. It’s because CBS Television Studios pays its writers, actors and producers so much more than NCIS is $4M+.
Hope that gives you a better idea of how Hollywood works!
Dillan, no backup as to where you got all those incredibly precise costs for those shows? You just making them up?
@Bill Gorman
I work in the biz, so I’m on a couple industry-only message boards. They’re mostly just PAs yacking on to each other, but I frequently chat to a few producers, production managers and cinematographers (here and there) working on some high-profile series.
I’m one of those people that actually has the gall to bluntly ask things like “how expensive is your show?” and “what were you smoking?”, and it gets me answers, so feel free to doubt me.
I’m not even going to risk exposing the sites I frequent, so here’s something I learnt a few days ago only an insider-of-sorts would know:
Since Season 8, Smallville has been filmed on the Panavision Genesis. Why? Two reasons:
1) Because the amount of time the production saved in setting up shots (had they still used film) allowed for more time to be spent on rehearsing and perfecting their episodes;
2) PS3 knew the show would be moving almost-permanently to Metropolis, and after discussing it with D.P. Glen Winter, they decided the harsh cold look HD offers better matches Metropolis’ colour palette, and would allow the show to develop a new moody look to match the dark storylines.
It was not a financially motivated decision to switch the HD (Smallville rent its cameras and lenses directly from Panavision, so development/delivery costs are the same too), it was purely creative.
I disagree, NCIS:LA has more on location shoots than the NCIS.
I assume shooting offset is more expensive, time consuming.
I agree LL’s acting is weak, they just need to slide him into more of a secondary role and not let him get exposed so much.
Most businesses, let alone TV show making businesses, expend the majority of their money on workforce (the talent.)
Labor costs are also usually the first thing to be looked at for cuts in costs.
Move your production to Canada, etc.