Sci Fi TV Network Scorecards: Ranking the Networks

This past Summer I have been putting together scorecards for the broadcast networks as well as the cable and streaming channels, crunching the numbers and providing an analysis of each based on how well they have supported sci fi and fantasy television shows.  For each of the networks I have given a score of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest.  Now I am compiling those together into an overall ranking to show which networks have been the best for sci fi and which have been the worst.  (Spoiler Alert on the worst: it rhymes with sci fi.)  The general assumption across the television networks is that sci fi and fantasy shows are cancelled more often that other scripted shows.  But as I proved in my last post, that is not necessarily true.  The fact is that cancelling shows is just part of the television business and a lot of shows get cancelled.  Sci fi entries tend to make up a smaller part of the overall population, so it just seems like they are cancelled more to genre fans.  That is not always the case, though it does vary by network.  The ranking below is based in part on the numbers, and also on the quality of the shows the network produces, and their general disposition towards sci fi TV.  Note that not all networks are covered here, just those with enough notable genre entries to be counted.  And the newer streaming services like HBO Max and Peacock still need at least another year before I can get a good gauge on where they stand.

The numbers below that track cancellations by network are based on new scripted shows that debuted over the past ten years (starting in the 2011-12 season).  I look at the percent cancelled after one, two, and three seasons and I compare sci fi and fantasy shows to all scripted programming on the network.  The final column shows the percent that have made it to four seasons or more.  Among the scripted shows that I am considering are those directed at an adult and/or family audience and that would be considered “Prime Time” fare. In other words, kids shows are mostly thrown out (unless they also attract a notable adult audience like Netflix’s Voltron: Legendary Defender), and I am also not considering reality and other non-scripted shows (far too many of those to keep track of).  Active shows are included in the New Show Count column but not in the percentages unless they have made it to the fourth season mark or more.  For example, The CW’s Batwoman is included in the show count but not the percentages yet because it is headed into its third season, but HBO’s Westworld is in the show count and also counted as one that will be making it to the fourth season mark. Mini-series are excluded from these tallies  Click on the links below to see the full scorecard for each network.  And be sure to follow this site and the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Page as we head into the new season for status updates and breaking news on the shows currently airing as well as my predictions on which shows will be renewed or cancelled.

>View all the Network Scorecards Here

The CW

Score: 4 out 5

If I were to base the score of this network solely on its renewal history, then it would get a 4 ½ or a 5 because this is the Happy Net that likes to keep its shows going. Its cancellation rate for sci fi/fantasy shows, as well as all of its scripted programming, is the lowest by far among the broadcast networks and among the lowest across all networks. But while The CW has been supportive of sci fi and fantasy shows, the quality of its output is not always top-notch with the heavy focus on sophomoric tales that appeal to the young adult demo.  And its shows have plenty of padding in order to fill out that twenty-plus episode mark each season.  But the Arrow-verse entries have at least been fun and delivered probably the best live-action take on DC heroes of late.  And the network has put out a few other shows that have delivered competent or better genere tales over the past ten years like The 100 and The Originals. This has been a good landing place for the genre entries that have joined its schedule, and typically if a show makes it past its first season, it is pretty much guaranteed to stick around for a minimum of four years as the numbers below prove.

Amazon

Score: 3 ½ out 5

This streamer  has been willing to pick up sci fi and fantasy originals and has been patient with them for the most part.  It has cancelled some fan-favorites after one season like Truth Seekers and it bowed out of the fantasy entry Britannia after one year (that show has since produced two more seasons in Britain).  But for the most part it has typically allowed its genre entries to go for at least two years and has quite a number of active shows currently on its slate plus major franchises like The Wheel of Time and Lord of the Rings in the works. Up to this point, Prime Video appears to be a decent landing spot for sci fi and fantasy shows, and they have a better than average chance of surviving beyond their first season. Amazon does not add too many new titles each year, but it also does not churn through shows like Netflix. Three or four seasons may be the max that most of its shows go (The Man in the High Castle is the streamer’s longest running genre entry at four seasons), but that appears to be the current trend across most of the streaming services.

Apple TV+

Score: 3 ½ out 5

It is still pretty early in the life of this streaming service, but the initial indications are that it is a good landing spot for sci fi and fantasy shows. The quality of its output has been good or better so far and it has plenty more on the away.   The first three genre entries that it released (For All Mankind, See, and Servant) have all been renewed through their third season, and from what I am hearing work has already begun on the second season of the upcoming Foundation. The only sci fi/fantasy series that has not made it past a first season so far is Amazing Stories and that might have been a rights issue. We don’t know yet if Apple TV+ will have the same three-to-four season wall we have seen from the Big Three streamers, but it does appear to be giving its originals time to tell their stories. If it continues along the same path for the next few years, its rating could rise higher.

FX

Score: 3 out 5

This cable net does not put out very many sci fi/fantasy shows, but of the four that have aired on the network over the past ten years, none have faced a quick cancellation. Legion wrapped up after three seasons, but that one was not built for a long run anyway and was at least given the chance to wrap up its storylines. The Strain went for four seasons with a conclusion, and both American Horror Story and What We Do in the Shadows are still active and and have been renewed for future seasons.  Plus it currently has an Alien TV series in the works which is tentatively set to premiere at some point in 2022.  Note that the shows that air under the FX on Hulu banner I am counting as Hulu entries.

>ALSO READ: Cancellation Watch Preview for the Fall 2021 Sci Fi and Fantasy TV Shows

HBO

Score: 3 out 5

Even though this premium cable network is well known for shows like Game of Thrones, Westworld, and The Watchman, overall it has not put out a lot of sci fi/fantsy over the past ten years (GoT started in the 2010-11 season and is not counted here).  But if a genre entry lands on HBO, the network will typically be patient with it and shows like His Dark Materials (a co-production with BBC) and The Leftovers were allowed to wrap up their stories despite tepid at best ratings.  I am dinging the network a bit for the cancellation of Lovecraft Country after one season, a move that certainly seems odd considering it had decent viewership and brought plenty of awards attention to the network.  But apart from that one, HBO has given its shows a chance and rarely cancelled them without a proper conclusion over the past ten years (Lovecraft Country did finish the story of the book even though a second season was planned).  It is possible the HBO execs rushed Game of Thrones to its end because the show was getting quite expensive, and that may have been part of the reason the final season disappointed.  But as a consolation, the network will be continuing to explore that universe with multiple spin-offs that will start arriving in 2022.

AMC

Score: 2 ½ out 5

This cable net has been willing to add sci fi and fantasy shows to its schedule, and it has been patient with them early on. But if they don’t have The Walking Dead in the title, their survival rate after that first season is not so great. NOS4A2 and The Terror were cancelled after two seasons, and fan-favorites Into the Badlands and Humans ended after three seasons without the chance to fully resolve their storylines.  If you are a fan of TWD, then this is the network for you because they will be leaning heavily on that franchise for the next few years (and possibly longer).  But if zombies are not your thing, or you just grew tired of that show, AMC does not have much to offer at this point.  The Vampire Chronicles could prove an interesting addition to the schedule, but it sure seems that vampires have been done to death of late (as have zombies).  But it is reasonable to expect AMC to offer some more genre entries of note in the coming years (and The Ballad of Black Tom definitely looks interesting).

Freeform

Score: 2 ½ out 5

This cable net (which was known as ABC Family for part of the last ten years) puts out its share of genre entries, though mostly YA-focused supernatural dramas, and several of those have stuck around for multiple season runs. But then they all tend to cap off by the third season mark, and some were cancelled without much of a resolution (Stitchers, Siren). Its offerings are similar to the output from The CW, especially the non-Arrow-verse shows, so if you like those you will probably enjoy the genre entries from Freeform. Just don’t expect them to stick around nearly as long as those on The CW.

Hulu

Score: 2 ½ out 5

This streamer has been willing to add sci fi and fantasy shows to its lineup, and it has tended to be patient with them in their first season.  After that, though, the mortality rate does go up.  Hulu has done less in the way of science fiction with more of a focus on supernatural and horror, and that is likely due to budgetary concerns.  Unlike Netflix and Amazon, Hulu has not spent big on its originals with the exception of high-profile shows like The Handmaid’s Tale.  Its budgets appears closer to those of the basic cable channels, but that is not necessarily a bad thing.  Lower production costs can help keep a show going longer, though as with the other streaming services, Hulu originals rarely last longer than three to four seasons (though The Handmaid’s Tale has made it to five now).  With Disney now the main controlling partner for the service, it will be interesting to see the direction it will take in the coming years.  Assumming Daredevil and Jessica Jones do come back, Hulu seems to be a likely landing place.  And the adult animated MCU series Hit Monkey is still in the works with a distant hope that Howard the Duck might move forward at some point as well.

>Keep up with the latest news and the status of the current sci fi and fantasy shows with our weekly Sci Fi TV Update posts

Paramount+

Score: 2 ½ out 5

This is another relatively new streaming service, though it does already have a few years under its belt as CBS All Access and those are factored in here as well.  It has been supportive of its Star Trek shows with Picard already picked up for a third season and it looks like Discovery could be headed to a fifth year (surpassing the three-to-four season wall which the streamer already did with its non-genre legal drama The Good Fight). But the cancellation of The Twilight Zone after two seasons came as somewhat of a surprise and Paramount+ seems to act more like a broadcast network when it comes to the renewal/cancellation decisions for non-Trek shows (with five of its originals cancelled after one or two seasons so far). Affiliated CBS has been a genre-averse network for quite some time (more on that below), but Parmount+ might be more willing to consider sci fi entries going forward. Whether they will last very long there, though, remains to be seen.

Starz

Score: 2 ½ out 5

Starz has not been as prolific in scripted originals among the premium cable channels with only nineteen shows released over the past ten years (that excludes mini-series). And while it has only put out four genre entries during that time, that still represents 20% of its total output.  Starz has been willing to consider adding genre entries to its slate of originals and it does show some patience with them early on. But don’t expect them to stick around for an extended period, and Starz will cancel shows without allowing them to wrap up their storylines as it did with American Gods and Ash vs. Evil Dead.

TNT

Score: 2 ½ out 5

This cabler does not put out a lot in the way of sci fi TV, but two of the three genre entries from the past ten years went at least four seasons (five for The Last Ship and currently four for Snowpiercer). As the basic cable channels in general continue to shy away from scripted programming, there may be even fewer offerings, but genre entries do tend to have a decent chance of running for multiple seasons on this network.

NBC

Score: 2 out 5

The peacock network has been receptive to adding sci fi and fantasy shows and has even taken some chances (The Good Place, Dracula, You, Me, and the Apocalypse). It is no more likely to cancel genre entries over their first two seasons than it is with other scripted programming (though it does cancel a high percentage of its overall scripted shows). But they rarely last for four seasons or more. And in general, NBC acts much like the other Big Four broadcast nets and focuses primarily on the same-day ratings. Shows that do not perform well based on those numbers are more likely to get cancelled, even if other factors like delayed viewing or fan support suggest that standing by the show may ultimately prove profitable for the network (and they must have been embarrased this past Summer when cancelled Manifest topped the Nielsen Streaming Rankings with its encore run on Netflix for seven weeks in a row). I expect more shows of interest to hit the schedule in future seasons (like La Brea), but fans may be reluctant to invest in them especially after the recent cancellations of Manifest and Debris.

>Go to r/SciFiTV to join the discussion on sci fi and fantasy television and to keep up with the latest news, trailers, schedule announcements and more

Netflix

Score: 2 out 5

This steamer has been more than willing to add sci fi and fantasy shows to its slate of originals, but don’t expect them to stick around more than three to four seasons.  Its score would have been at least a point higher a few years back when the first season cancellation rate was lower, but Netflix has been much quicker to pull the plug the last few years. And that includes highly-watched shows like Jupiter’s Legacy, The Irregulars, and Away. In addition, Netflix’s churn strategy and three-to-four season wall limits the chances that a show will have a lengthy run and fails to reward loyal viewership. Short runs for a show are not necessarily a bad thing, and plenty of sci fi and fantasy shows could have benefited from less padding. But the Netflix strategy is not necessarily in sync with the creative side of the shows. For example, The OA creators planned a five-season run for the series, but that tenure is unlikely for almost any show on the streamer. So while Netflix offers plenty of choices for genre fans, don’t get attached to any one show because it could get yanked quite quickly, and at best it will stick around for four seasons and a max of forty episodes.

ABC

Score: 1 ½ out 5

The alphabet network once had long-running shows like Agents of SHIELD and Once Upon A Time on its schedule, but genre entries have been sparse of late and few have had a very long tenure.  Of the new sci fi and fantasy shows that have premiered since the 2011-12 season, 67% have been cancelled after one year with an additional 22% getting yanked by their second season. ABC has been willing to greenlight sci fi and fantasy shows over the past ten-plus years and it was considering adding a couple for the upcoming season with one still be in contention. But the network has been shying away from genre entries of late for the most part, and they have cancelled every new one that has premiered since the 2016-17 season. I expect few sci fi TV shows from this network going forward as MCU or other Disney-related projects will likely get pushed to the Disney+ and/or Hulu streaming platforms. And based on recent history, any new genre show that does land on ABC does not have a good chance of surviving.

FOX

Score: 1 ½ out 5

FOX is notorious among the sci fi community for some of quick cancellations (Firefly, Almost Human) but its cancellation rate of genre entries after one season has been lower than that among all its scripted programming over the past ten years (though that jumps up quickly at the two-season mark).  The fact is that the network has been willing to add sci fi and fantasy entries to its schedule, even if it does not support them for too long.  It is unclear what direction the network will take going forward, and if it comes under the influence of the FOX News division (which seems likely), that could be bad for genre television.  But the fact is that the broadcast networks in general are facing major changes ahead and may shy away from any scripted programming that veers too much from Prime Time-friendly formula.  The fact that FOX has no genre entries on its schedule for the coming season just may foretell the direction it will follow.

Showtime

Score: 1 ½ out 5

Of the three premium cable networks looked at here, Showtime has had the least to offer sci fi and fantasy fans over the past ten years. Of the twenty-eight ongoing scripted originals the network has released since the 2011-12 season, only three have been genre entries. And two of those were cancelled after one season (67% vs. 32% for the general population) including Moonbase 8 which I am counting as a one-and-done show even though there has not been an official cancellation announcment.  Showtime does have at least one show of interest currently in development (The Man Who Fell to Earth), so it has not given up on sci fi TV. But it does not appear that this is the best landing place for a genre show.

>ALSO READ: All of the Cancelled and Ending Sci Fi TV Shows from the 2020-21 Season

CBS

Score: 1 ½ out 5

CBS has long been a genre-averse network with regular season shows often experiencing a low survival rate.  The network has tried to get some sci fi entries on its schedule in the Summer months, but the quality of those is often specious at best and all almost all have been cancelled after a few years.  During the regular season, CBS requires most genre entries to stick close to Prime Time-friendly formulas, and even then rarely keeps them around long.  Network decision-making still adheres closely to old school thinking that focuses heavily on the same-day ratings, and genre entries usually end up on the wrong side of that.  Even when a show like fan-favorite Limitless followed the procedural formula and produced decent numbers for its timeslot (along with strong delayed viewing gains), the network was unwilling to support it.  CBS does not greenlight many sci fi/fantasy shows (with fewer and fewer in the Summer of late), and those that do hit the schedule do not stick around long.

Syfy

Score: ½ out 5

Yes indeed, the network that is supposed to be dedicated sci fi and fantasy finds itself at the bottom of a list ranking how well networks support genre entries.  The shows that have engaged fans like Dark Matter, The Expanse, and Wynonna Earp have been cancelled.  And many of the other shows it has put out have been mediocre genre entries at best.  It also does little to promote its own programming, especially after a show has aired its first season.  For the first half of the past ten years, it was more patient with its shows and at least gave most of them a second season.  But over the last five years it has been quick to cancel as it focuses primarily on same-day ratings results and its scripted programming choices have diminished to just a few selections per year, with little of note in the upcoming production queue beyond a few attempts to capitalize on the name recognition of mostly faded franchises (Chucky, Day of the Dead).   Syfy is not even the Sharknado network anymore (whether that is a good thing or bad), so it does not have much of an identity these days at all other than a second-tier (at best) cable network throwing out random scripted entries to make itself appear viable in an over-crowded television market.

More from CancelledSciFi.com: Keep up with the status updates of all the currently airing sci fi and fantasy shows with our Sci Fi TV Update posts on Fridays. And be sure to follow the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site  for breaking news and updates.

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