Network For Sale! Cheap!

This week ViacomCBS and WarnerMedia, owners of The CW, announced they were putting the TV network up for sale (!). Wow!

As readers of my blog (both of you) know, The CW is the home of all the various Arrowverse shows, such as The Flash, Legends Of Tomorrow, Superman & Lois, Stargirl and yes, even Batwoman. They also air other series such as Riverdale, Legacies, All-American, Walker and The 4400.

Why consider selling? As usual, it's all about money. Amazingly ViacomCBS and WarnerMedia claim that The CW has NEVER turned a profit since its inception back in 2006! That seems... hard to believe, but I suppose they know what they're talking about.

Another reason for the potential sale may have to do with Netflix. It's all way more complicated than I care to get into here, but basically The CW had a deal with Netflix, who would air their various series and help them reach a larger (and more profitable) audience.

Unfortunately that deal ended in 2019, as ViacomCBS and WarnerMedia shifted their libraries to their own streaming services— HBO Max and Paramount+. Foreign sales reportedly ended recently as well.

So what does all this mean for the future of the Arrowverse? I have a casual interest in all this after all, as I regularly review several of the shows here on my little blog.

Unfortunately it's wayyyyy too early to know. It'll likely depend on who— if anyone— buys the network.

If I had to guess (which is always dangerous), I'd say it'll mean the end for a lot of the shows. Aging series like The Flash (currently in its eight season) and Legends Of Tomorrow (in its seventh) will likely be canceled. In fact The Flash would probably be ending this year even without the network sale, as many of its stars are tiring of the show and are anxious to move on.

Batwoman will probably be on the chopping block as well, since it's ratings have been consistently and shockingly dismal ever since it premiered. In fact the most recent season's pulled in less than 500,000 viewers per episode! Holy cow! That's lowwwww!

Legends Of Tomorrow's not doing much better, as its recent ratings are only slightly higher than Batwoman's.

Hopefully the newer— and frankly, much better— shows like Superman & Lois and Stargirl will continue on the network after its sold. Or find a home over on HBO Max. They're both too good to lose. Fingers crossed!