The CW has given full-season orders to three of its freshmen series. Charmed earned a traditional back-nine order which brings its season one total to 22 episodes while Legacies and All-American earned three more episodes bringing their totals to 16.
The full-season order to Jennie Snyder Urman’s Charmed reboot reflects the series’ performance. Despite — or possibly fueled by — pre-launch controversy, Charmed has helped the CW reestablish a foothold on Sundays. It is the highest-rated and most-watched of the three new CW shows in linear ratings. Additionally, it posted the CW’s strongest digital launch ever this fall on CWTV.com and the CW app until its record delivery was eclipsed by Legacies.
The Vampire Diaries/The Originals universe follow-up, which was tracking strong in awareness in the weeks before its premiere, got off to a flying start on digital as the new biggest CW debut. Legacies and Charmed now rank as the CW’s No. 3 and No. 4 digital series behind streaming juggernauts The Flash and Riverdale.
All-American is in a different spot compared to those shows. There is a sense of disappointment in the series’ ratings performance. Despite solid reviews, the culture-clash high school drama ranks toward the bottom of the CW’s lineup among total viewers and demos. Its digital play has been OK though not strong enough to make the show a streaming breakout hit. That being said, The CW believes in the show’s creative prospects and are giving it more time, something they have done with other shows in the past.
