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Canceled TV Shows 2016: ‘The 100’ Could Be In Trouble If Ratings Don’t Hold, But Producer Gives Strong Sign For Season 4

By Nathan Francis
Published on: 02:14 PST, Jan 30, 2016

The list of canceled TV shows for 2016 could have a surprising addition, with reports that The 100 is in need of a strong finish to stay out of the danger zone.

The CW drama just returned for its third season, but a new day could make it vulnerable to sinking ratings. Last season, the show averaged a 0.5 same-day rating, numbers that would put it in trouble for one of the major networks but isn’t too low for a drama on The CW.

But as TV By The Numbers reported, The 100 could fall into the danger zone if the switch from Wednesday to Thursday nights doesn’t go smoothly.

“Last season ‘The 100’ averaged a shade above a 0.5 same-day rating following ‘Arrow’ on Wednesday nights. If it can do that again on Thursdays, following another DC show, ‘Legends of Tomorrow,’ it should get into safe territory again.”

“‘Legends’ will probably open Thursday to a decent rating, but its long-range prospects are less certain as it features a group of characters less well-known than either ‘Arrow’ or ‘The Flash.’ It may not deliver the week-in, week-out lead-in to ‘The 100’ that ‘Arrow’ did last season”.

The 100 could also have help from a big season planned ahead. After Clarke killed everyone inside Mt. Weather and then left her people at the end of the second season, the third season starts with a bit of an uneven timeline.

“We are going to have our first time jump between seasons,” executive producer Jason Rothenberg told fans at Comic-Con (via Entertainment Weekly). “We’re going to pick things up a couple months after Clarke bailed on her people.”

As the report noted, there are some other big plans for the third season.

“Elsewhere on earth, the new storyline with Jaha (Isaiah Washington) discovering the mansion and the mysterious A.I,. who appears to have nefarious goals, will play a big role in the third season. ‘The [A.I.] story really sets us in a new much more science fiction direction,’ Rothenberg said. ‘We started the show as a real hardcore sci-fi show in space. Obviously we lost that and I really missed that. This lets us get back to the hardcore sci-fi.'”

The 100 has some other momentum that could keep it from joining the list of canceled shows in 2016. For one, the show has a small but vocal fan base that is very active on social media. That has proven to be a big bonus for a show, like when fans of Community rallied online to help save the show from cancellation. If The 100 should fall into risk of being canceled there would likely be a vocal reaction among fans.

There could be some even more strong signs that The 100 is headed for another season. One came directly from Rothenberg, who let a message to fans on Friday as shooting completed on the third season.

At this point, given the track record of renewals at The CW along with critical acclaim for the third season and the confidence of its executive producer, if The 100 joined the list of canceled shows in 2016 it would come as a big surprise.

[Image via The CW]

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