NBC's "Heroes" may come crashing down to Earth for the last time.
Earlier this week, word emerged that NBC was unlikely to renew "Heroes" for a fifth season during a report that appeared in New York Magazine. Supposedly NBC is so happy with their new and returning series, that the network doesn't see any need to renew "Heroes" in face of continuously declining ratings.
To add fuel to the fire, NBC has also announced that "The Cape" — a new superhero series — has been picked up for the Fall according to The Hollywood Reporter. "The Cape" follows a disgraced cop who must leave his family behind and become his son's favorite superhero in order to clear his name and clean up the city. The series stars David Lyons ("ER"), Jennifer Ferrin ("Life on Mars"), Keith David ("Death at a Funeral") and Summer Glau ("Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles").
Additionally, NBC has stated that the network will not add any other new series to their Fall schedule. While that doesn't completely rule out a return for "Heroes," adding a new superhero series greatly increases the odds that the series will not return.
When "Heroes" debuted in 2006, it drew impressive ratings throughout the first season and the series was hailed for its portrayal of ordinary people with extraordinary powers. However, during the second season, "Heroes" began to decline both creatively and in the ratings. The audience share for the series has continued to drop, while "Chuck" — another genre series on NBC — has been able to maintain and build a steady audience.
Earlier this year, "Heroes" creator Tim Kring voiced his opinions about why the series has suffered during an interview with The AV Club.
"It becomes very hard to kill off certain characters," explained Kring. "You get a big bump from the shock of that, but the fallout will be a lot harder to deal with. The network has a very strong say in this, because of actors who are under contract and do publicity for them. It’s not just up to the writers to decide."
"It gets more complicated when you have a show that gets more popular," continued Kring. "Not just with your audience, but with your own network. We were very free to do whatever we wanted until people had opinions. There’s a real luxury to making your show in a vacuum, when the microscope isn’t on. It’s why every year we make eight or nine episodes before the audience starts watching, and it’s always more comfortable to work."
Kring also suggested that "Heroes" would have performed better if fewer episodes had been made each year.
"I would have done fewer episodes," said Kring. "Thirteen [episodes] a season is fabulous — you can really control the quality and the way you craft them. The sheer number of episodes has been a real struggle for us."
New York Magazine also cited rumors that "Heroes" could possibly wrap up the series as a two hour movie or as a four hour miniseries. However, the fate of the series is currently unknown.
