Will there be a full Season 4?

[Dave]

Enterprise to be cancelled

from SciFi Wire

Enterprise Fate Uncertain

Leslie Moonves, the CBS chief who also oversees sister network UPN, told the Scripps Howard News Service that the fate of UPN's struggling Star Trek: Enterprise is uncertain and will remain so for the next several months. Despite a change in the series' storyline and the addition of Star Trek to its title, Enterprise has seen its ratings languish without improvement from the previous season, UPN entertainment president Dawn Ostroff told the news service.

"We just picked up three drama pilots. We'll pick up a few more after that," Moonves said. "You see the new stuff, you see the old stuff, and you compare and say, 'What is the better schedule?' So it's not like, 'Gee, if Enterprise is up 10 percent between now and May, it will get picked up.' ... It's, 'All right. How do we build Wednesday better?' 'Does it include Enterprise?' Very possibly. 'Does it not?' Possibly as well."

It's possible that, instead of being canceled, Enterprise could move to Friday nights, Moonves added.

I don't see where this is coming from. For all of Enterprise's problems, and I'm speaking as a huge critic too, it is still UPN's most popular show. The Season 3 ratings have improved, at a time when most networks are struggling because of the multitude of digital channels now available. UPN are never going to have shows to compete with Enterprise.

I really believe that Enterprise is suffering because there has been just too much Trek recently. It would have done better if they had rested it for a few years. But it also would do much better if it was syndicated like the previous series instead of only being on UPN. Many people cannot get UPN anyway.

I'd say that in the UK, Enterprise on Sky One and C4 is just as popular as any earlier series, with the exception of the Next Generation which still draws very high ratings in repeats.

 

[ray gower]

Being a little simple, what, in viewing habits, is the difference between Wednesday and Friday?

I like Dave I am an ST critic because I love the Star Trek Universe. But I find I am suffering Trek fatigue with the repeats, betweeen DS9, TNG and Voyager I think we are running at some 17 episodes per week, all of them repeated at least twice. We are only saved from TOS because only the BBC have the showing rights and they aren't that desperate for shows!

With all that going on, I don't think I would shed a major tear if Enterprise did disappear. Like DS9, it has suffered an insipid first season and a dire 2nd season. I'm not sure if the new 'story arc' is going to be enough to pull back an audience that has stopped watching, especially as there is still no major story being played to hold people.

 

[Dave]

April Fool?

Having already been stung by an April Fools Joke today, and feeling stupid, it's a relief to know I wasn't the only one. I just read this:

SciFi Wire 09:00am ET, 1-April-04

Enterprise Gets Limited Renewal?

UPN will green-light a fourth season of Star Trek: Enterprise, but will only give the struggling SF series a 12-episode commitment, according to a rumor on the SyFy Portal Web site. Citing two sources, SyFy Portal added that Enterprise could earn another 12-episode order if the ratings for the initial dozen episodes merit it.

The site noted that the retooled Enterprise, bolstered by heightened action and the Xindi arc, has performed reasonably well against such stiff competition as the Fox juggernaut American Idol and The WB's popular Smallville. SyFy Portal noted that it was still unclear whether or not longtime Trek executive producers Rick Berman and Brannon Braga would continue to run the show if it does return. A final announcement about the fate of Enterprise is expected within the next two weeks.

What do you think? I guess it could really be true, but it's an odd time to make an announcement.

 

[Dave]

Actually, it's not an odd time to make an annoucement like this apparently. UPN have been reviewing their output over the last month. There has been talk of them reducing the amount of scifi they show (I'm not familiar with them, living in the UK, so I don't know what their schedule is like. I know they make Jake 2.0.)

They have moved Enterprise from 8pm to 9pm on Wednesdays so that it no longer clashes with Smallville. They have cut the number of episodes this season to 24 (normally Trek is always 26, though most shows have 24 as a maximum).

So, cutting it to 12 episodes next season is possible.

There is some fan speculation that there will be one final season of 24 episodes because 26+26+24+24=100 and 100 is the magic number for syndication.

Rick Berman in 'Star Trek Magazine' said that "the decision to produce two fewer episodes this season has nothing to do with the numbers you're talking about, because the numbers you're talking about are a Paramount phenomenon. Paramount is the company that owns and distributes this show in syndication, and UPN and CBS are an entirely different division of the company."

 

[ray gower]

I wonder if there will be many who would be cut up if Enterprise did get tailed off?

Reducing the seasons to 12 or 13 shows might help somewhat. At least if they are going to try for a 'Story Arc' they can concenrate on the arc and not have to pad things out as badly as they have done.

 

[Dave]

I've merged together all the Season 4 speculation about UPN picking it up, number of episodes etc.

I just read this from RB:

from Scifi Wire

Berman Talks Enterprise Future

Star Trek: Enterprise executive producer Rick Berman told the official Star Trek Communicator magazine that he's confident UPN will pick up the ratings-challenged series for a fourth season, according to a report on the TrekToday Web site. "I am confident ... that we are going to get a season four from UPN," Berman told the magazine after the filming of this season's final episode, "Zero Hour." The magazine asked whether Enterprise would be shopped around to other networks if UPN declined to pick it up. "I would think that, just for the general sense of stability, our primary goal is to keep the show going on UPN," Berman said. "If it is not picked up on UPN, and it could be picked up elsewhere, that would be a terrific thing as well."

Berman said that rumors of the show's potential demise have made things "difficult at times." "TV is a business that relies on yearly pickups, and we have been very blessed that we have had lots and lots of those," he added, referring to the regular renewals of previous Trek series. "To have to deal with the anxiety of not knowing whether a show is being picked up or not is par for the course in TV production."

Berman added that he appreciated fan efforts to keep the show alive, including the Hollywood Reporter ads placed by the Enterprise Project. "I never know whether it helps, but it certainly is appreciated by everybody on the crew and the cast of the show," he said. "I have seen that the fans of Angel have been doing the same kind of thing on a regular basis now. I know that it was fan protest that brought the original series back for its third season, so I have no idea. We appreciate it, though, and every little bit helps."

Despite Enterprise's being "on the bubble," Berman and his writing staff have already begun planning for season four. He said the the final episode, "Zero Hour," will set up a mini-arc for the beginning of the new season. But, he added, "If I tell you more right now, I will give away the ending of the season. ... My feeling is that Enterprise will probably not go back to the first and second season job of simple exploration of space. I think there will be missions, but not missions that are anywhere as lengthy as what we have done with this 25-episode Xindi arc. I think that we will probably be dealing more with smaller arcs, maybe arcs of three, four or five shows. We see season four [as] being as different from season three as season three was from season two." Enterprise airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

 

[ray gower]

I thought most fans were baying for B's blood, or at least somebody new at the helm?

However the last paragraph offers some hopeful news. Shorter arcs, means the episodes should be more like the last few episodes (18-20 of season 3), tightly integrated, yet still allow the characters to develop as things progress in the greater scheme of things.

The bad, is that P/Mount will find it much easier to stop the series, if the B's foul up.

 

[Dave]

from SciFi Wire

Is Star Trek Over?

A third year of shrinking audiences for UPN's Star Trek: Enterprise means potential cancellation, which would make the 2004-'05 season the first in 17 years without a first-run Star Trek series, USA Today reported. Coupled with the poor box-office return for 2002's feature film Star Trek: Nemesis, fans of the Paramount franchise face the prospect of no new Star Trek on the near horizon for the first time in a quarter-century, the newspaper reported.

Longtime Trek executive producer Rick Berman remains sanguine about an Enterprise renewal. "Right now, I'm optimistic the show is going to be picked up for a fourth season," Berman told the newspaper. But, he added, "as to whether [the franchise] could use a rest for a while, that's a valid question. I think, eventually, Star Trek will be taking a breather."

UPN likely won't reveal Enterprise's fate until it announces its fall slate next week. Viewership is off 43 percent from its first season, and the series suffered its lowest-rated regularly scheduled original episode in April (2.9 million), the newspaper reported.

Berman and two other producers also are in "very early discussions" about another Star Trek feature film. It would be a prequel, but not related to Enterprise, he said.

I don't think they can have NO Star Trek being made, there are other commerical considerations involved such as the recent lawsuit by Activision for not promoting the brand sufficently.

I think that is the reason why they have begun speculating about a Star Trek XI film. Star Trek XI

 

[Dave]

Renewed

According to the Save Star Trek Campaign via Trek Today & Slashdot it has been renewed, but the annoucement won't come until Thursday:

from Trek Today

UPN has decided to renew Star Trek: Enterprise for a fourth season, the SaveEnterprise.com fan campaign reported today.

The official UPN press presentation of the network's Fall schedule isn't scheduled until Thursday, but a press release from the campaign quoted unnamed production sources as saying the show would definitely be back. The site reported Star Trek executive producer Rick Berman would be flying into New York this week in order to make the official announcement himself.

Although Enterprise's place on the UPN line-up seems secure, it is not yet known exactly what timeslot it will occupy. According to SaveEnterprise.com, there is a possibility that the show will end up on Friday instead of Wednesday, which would take it out of competition with Smalville. Definite confirmation of the show's timeslot is not expected until Thursday - and of course, until a renewal is officially announced, UPN could still change their mind altogether.

Either way, Enterprise will have to work hard to win back viewers next year. Since the show premiered in 2001, it has lost a huge portion of its audience, leaving it in danger of cancellation by UPN. Although fan campaigns such as Save Enterprise and the Enterprise Project may have helped to convince the network of the franchise's continued viability, in order to secure a fifth season Enterprise will have to end its ratings drops.

Please keep in mind that UPN will not officially announce its Fall schedule until this Thursday, and until then the above should be treated as you would any rumour. Thanks go out to SaveEnterprise.com for this.

from Slashdot

The only snag? It looks like 'Enterprise' might be moved to Fridays next year, and Firefly fans can tell you what a great place that is..."

Originally posted by ray gower
Being a little simple, what, in viewing habits, is the difference between Wednesday and Friday?

It's a traditional 'going-out' night among the younger people who don't need to find babysitters

Therefore less of those crucial young, predominantly male, money-in-pocket-to-spend, viewers that US advertisers want to get hold of.

US-made TV seems to think of nothing other than advertising revenue potencial. The craft or art of making quality TV just doesn't appear anywhere in the equation.

 

[Dave]

Well, UPN head honcho Dawn Ostroff seems to think that Friday night's are best for it (to die in maybe?) It doesn't bother me since in the UK I've got use to Sky One or the BBC never showing Star Trek on the same night for very long. And not mentioning Cricket, Football and Olympics...

from SCIFI WIRE

Fans Helped Renew Enterprise

Dawn Ostroff, UPN's president of entertainment, said that fan clamor was party responsible for the network's renewing Star Trek: Enterprise for a fourth season in a new timeslot, 9 p.m. ET/PT Fridays. "By the amount of mail and calls that we've received from loyal Star Trek fans, we have every reason to believe that the viewers will follow Enterprise to its new night and time," Ostroff told advertisers May 20 at the network's "upfront" presentation. "After all, this is a show that recently topped a USA Today poll, with 70 percent of the respondents voting for Enterprise to come back next season."

The new timeslot "is the same night and time where X-Files found its following and thrived for years," Ostroff added.

UPN officially picked up the ratings-challenged Enterprise, which had been "on the bubble" for weeks, meaning that its fate was uncertain. The network said that the new season will be "more action-packed, with spectacular special effects," and "will take Star Trek: Enterprise into further uncharted territory, while advancing last season's critically acclaimed storylines, including Vulcan Sub Commander T'Pol's (Jolene Blalock) blossoming relationship with Chief Engineer Charles 'Trip' Tucker III (Connor Trinneer) and mysterious twists in the familiar timeline." The third-season finale of Enterprise, "Zero Hour," airs May 26 at 8 p.m.

The X-Files wasn't on a small network that could barely afford it though, but Enterprise is still one of UPN's top rated shows, so they would be stupid to let it go somewhere else.

Crucially, she doesn't mention the number of episodes next season, which could still be as little as 12!

 

[Nick 0208 Ldn]

Originally posted by Dave
Well, UPN head honcho Dawn Ostroff seems to think that Friday night's are best for it (to die in maybe?) It doesn't bother me since in the UK I've got use to Sky One or the BBC never showing Star Trek on the same night for very long. And not mentioning Cricket, Football and Olympics...



The X-Files wasn't on a small network that could barely afford it though, but Enterprise is still one of UPN's top rated shows, so they would be stupid to let it go somewhere else.

Crucially, she doesn't mention the number of episodes next season, which could still be as little as 12!

As few as 12 episodes in a Star Trek series? i know that you said "could be" but still, that's hardly anything in the big scheme of things, a bit of a worry.

I'm not too fussed about which night it is screened, Enterprise needs and i would like to know whether it has a long term future or not, that is the important thing for me. All this uncertainty is no good for anybody.

Nick,

 

[Dave]

It is always a little hard on us UK fans. Star Trek: Enterprise is not the best Scifi on TV, but I've still enjoyed it, and from what I've read of Season 4 it is probably the best Season so far. Yet we get no chance to input into these decisions, since they seem to get made before the series is even aired here.

At least we are getting 22 episodes rather than that estimate of 12! (that's only 2 less than some of the earlier series) And to be honest, they might get better writing if they cut it down to the 13 episodes that is more normal for UK television shows. 'Battlestar Galactica' has shown what can be done if you write 13 episodes together as a consistent whole body of work.

On the other hand, when I finally get to see this Seasons mini-arcs of three episodes, that might work equally well.

Whatever happens, it seems that this will they - won't they business is going to be an annual event from now on. It gets a little tiresome:

from scifi wire

Moonves: A Break Good For Trek?

Leslie Moonves—co-president and co-chief operating officer of Viacom, the parent company of CBS, UPN and Paramount—told SCI FI Wire that it may be time for Star Trek to take a break, though he added that no decision has been made on the future of UPN's ratings-challenged Star Trek: Enterprise. Speaking in an interview at the CBS/UPN winter press tour in West Hollywood, Calif., Moonves said: "It's hard to say right now. The ratings aren't great. It may be a franchise that should be rested a year or two. I know the diehards are not in favor of that, but I think if we rested a year or two, it might be a better thing. But we'll see what happens the rest of the year."

Persistent rumors say the show is on its last legs, that UPN has cut its season order from Paramount, which produces the show, and that star Scott Bakula (Capt. Jonathan Archer) is ready to quit. All untrue, cast members told SCI FI Wire. "I'll be disappointed if we wrap up this year," Bakula said in a separate interview. "I'd hate to see it end this year. … We're waiting to hear. It's a funny place to be in. I love the crew. I love the cast. The work situation has been tremendous. We're doing creative work, still, I think. And I know we have a lot of fans out there. So … as a television gig would go, it's a great, wonderful gig. And I'm loving it. So I will be disappointed. But we'll see. It ain't over until it's over."

Bakula and other cast members told SCI FI Wire that they expect, if UPN decides to cancel the show, the network will give producers enough notice so that they can write a finale to the series. But as the writers are currently writing the 21st of 22 season episodes now, that notice would have to come in short order. "We've got to know soon," Bakula said. "So I don't know. They're not under any obligation to let us know. They can do whatever they want to do, and they may. … We don't call those shots."

Even so, Bakula said, "The indication was [and] has been often that this would be our last season. But then … we were told we were going to get an early indication of that so we could wrap the show up in a nice way. And here we are, it's the end of January, and I know that they've broken stories through the 21st [episode]." Enterprise wraps production in March; an announcement about cancellation could be delayed as late as May.

Moonves said that a final decision will depend on how Enterprise performs in the ratings for the rest of the season, which will include new episodes exploring the "mirror universe" introduced in the original Star Trek series and a two-episode arc explaining why Klingons went from smooth foreheads to bumpy ones. How well would the show have to perform to be renewed? "I don't make predictions on what level," Moonves said. "It depends on what development is and what the rest of the schedule is like." But, he added, "I think the show this year has been much better [creatively] than last year. I like the changes that have been made. ... [As for the ratings,] when you're dealing with UPN, you're dealing with different expectation levels."