Which TV finales are being impacted by coronavirus (and which aren't)
As the world steps up its measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus, Hollywood has been doing its part by postponing releases of tentpole movies and halting production on TV shows across the globe. The impact on the industry will be enormous and far-reaching — and it can't even be fathomed yet, as the situation is still unfolding rapidly. It's already the biggest shutdown since the 2007 -2008 writers' strike, which lasted three months. You may be wondering how your favorite TV show that's currently on the air — and headed toward a finale — will be impacted. Here, we look at which popular comedies, dramas and reality shows are impacted by the corona crisis — and which of them finished production in time to likely avoid delays. (Note: All sorts of options are being explored, including trimming the number of episodes in a show's season. The information below is tentative, subject to change, in flux, etc.)
BC/BOB D'AMICO; Maarten de Boer/NBC; Gene Page/AMC; Michael Becker/FOX
American Idol (ABC)
The singing competition filmed three Hollywood Week episodes before the outbreak., as well as the Top 40 show. The top 40 show will now be split into two two-hour episodes, airing Mar. 29 and Apr. 5. On the nights of Apr. 12 and Apr. 19, they will air a two-hour episode titled "American Idol: This Is Me," highlighting the show's Top 20 contestants. The plan for the live shows, which were to begin on Apr. 6, has yet to be determined.
Better Call Saul (AMC)
The Breaking Bad prequel already finished filming season 5 and is on schedule to air its finale on Apr. 20.
Greg Lewis/AMC/Sony Pictures Television
The Blacklist (NBC )
The James Spader-starting thriller also stopped production, which could impact plans to air the season 7 finale in May.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine (NBC)
Andy Samberg’s cop comedy has already finished shooting its seventh season and is on track to bring you the season finale in late April.
Chicago Med/Chicago Fire/Chicago PD (NBC)
Production on Dick Wolf’s Chicago procedurals was halted due to the virus. The network was planning to air those season finales in May, but that is now up in the air.
Empire (FOX)
The music-business family drama halted production. The series finale was slated to run in May, but that plan is currently in flux.
Parrish Lewis/FOX
Fargo (FX)
The long-awaited fourth season starring Chris Rock was supposed to get underway on Apr. 19 and most of its 10-episode season is in the can. But given that the show ceased production last week, FX is postponing the return indefinitely.
FBI (CBS)
The elite-agent drama also hit the pause button on production. The season 2 finale was originally planned for May, but now the show will wrap up a few episodes short, on Mar. 31.
The Flash (The CW)
Production on the speedy superhero drama came to a halt. The season 6 finale was slated for May, though it is unclear how that status will change.
The Goldbergs (ABC)
Production on the family comedy halted production just before filming the finale, which was scheduled for mid-May. Now the season will be trimmed by one episode, and will tentatively air in May.
Grey’s Anatomy (ABC)
The medical soap halted production when the outbreak occurred and will end season 16 a few episode early — on Apr. 9 — with the 21st episode serving as the finale. Grey's was originally slated to end four episodes later, on May 16.
John Fleenor/ABC
Hawaii Five-0 (CBS)
The tropical police drama had finished shooting its tenth and final season. The series finale will air on Apr. 3, as scheduled.
Homeland (Showtime)
The eighth and final season of the spy thriller wrapped production last year, so Carrie Mathison’s last assignment will conclude as planned in late April.
How to Get Away With Murder (ABC)
The legal mystery had already concluded production on its sixth and final season, and is on track to unveil its series finale on May 14.
Insecure (HBO)
Issa Rae's comedy had already wrapped production on its fourth season. As planned, the season premiere will air April 12 and the season finale will debut June 14.
Killing Eve (BBC America)
Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer's spy thriller already wrapped production and was on schedule to air its season 3 finale in June. But now you'll receive it earlier, as BBC America is moving up the premiere from Apr. 26 to Apr. 12, which will likely shift the finale to May 31.
Last Man Standing (FOX)
The Tim Allen comedy was filming its season 8 finale when production was stopped. Fox was planning to air the finale in mid-May, although it is unclear how the production delay will impact that date.
The Masked Singer (FOX)
The costumed mystery competition has already wrapped production — and is planning to reveal its finale in mid-May, as scheduled.
Michael Becker/FOX
Modern Family (ABC)
There will be no delay on the Dunphy-Pritchett-Tucker farewell; the tri-family comedy had already finished production on its 250th and final episode. The series finale will air on Apr. 8.
Mom (CBS)
Production was halted on the Anna Faris-Allison Janney comedy. The finale was originally slated for May, though that plan is still up in the air.
NCIS (CBS)
Mark Harmon's long-running naval procedural has suspended production. The season 17 finale was planned for May, but the network is now figuring out a new course of action.
New Amsterdam (NBC)
The hospital drama was set to air its season 2 finale in May when it paused production. New Amsterdam will now end its season on Apr. 14, four episodes short of the original order.
Outlander (Starz)
The fantasy drama has already filmed all of its episodes for season 5, and the finale will air on May 10, as scheduled.
Riverdale (The CW)
The dark teen thriller has suspended production. Its finale was slated to air May 15, though that plan could change.
Star Trek: Picard (CBS All Access)
Patrick Stewart returned to Trek with a new drama earlier this year. All 10 episodes have been filmed, and the show is on schedule to unveil its season finale on Mar. 26. (Season 3 of Star Trek: Discovery, by the way, has already been filmed and will be ready for launch later this year).
Supergirl (The CW)
The flying superhero drama also went on production hiatus. It's up in the sky, er, air, whether the season 5 finale will air in May, as previously scheduled.
Supernatural (The CW)
The sci-fi roadtrip drama halted production while filming its final episodes. The season 15 finale — which also serves as the series finale — was set to air May 18, but given that post-production work could not be completed due to the shutdown, the show was taken off the air after the Mar. 23 episode. The final six episodes will air at a later date. "[W]e, the CW, and Warner Bros fully intend to return and finish the series," said co-showrunner Andrew Dabb. "It's not a matter of 'if', it's a matter of 'when.'"
Jeff Weddell/The CW
Superstore (NBC)
The big-box comedy paused production before the season 5 finale was filmed. That episode, which was slated to air in May, was to be the farewell episode for departing star America Ferrera, so the situation remains fluid.
Survivor (CBS)
The entire 40th season of the reality competition has already been filmed, save for the vote reveal at the end of the finale, which is a live event slated for May 13 (which leads into the reunion special). No decisions have been made about how that might be executed.
This Is Us (NBC)
The time-tripping family drama recently wrapped production on season 4 and is set to unveil its season finale on Mar. 24 as scheduled.
The Voice (NBC)
The singing competition already filmed episodes that are scheduled to air through the end of April. It's unclear how the production will handle its live shows and finale that are scheduled for May.
The Walking Dead (AMC)
The zombie drama wrapped production last year and was planning to air its season 10 finale on Apr. 12. However, the network said that post-production of the finale was impossible to complete at this time and the season will now end with the Apr. 5 episode. The finale will air as a special episode later this year. (Production on season 11, which was to begin in May, has been postponed, and it could impact its premiere date. Meanwhile, Fear the Walking Dead was in the middle of shooting its sixth season and is now taking a three-week hiatus — in addition to a previously planned one-week hiatus. It was previously expected to debut in the summer, and that could very well change now.)
Westworld (HBO)
The sci-fi thriller finished filming all of season 3 before the virus hit, and is on target to air its finale in May.
Will & Grace (NBC)
The revived quartet already finished filming their 11th season (or the third season of its second incarnation). NBC is aiming to still air the series finale on Apr. 23.
This list will be updated as information is made available.
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