NBC Renews ‘Chuck,’ ‘Law & Order’; Cancels ‘Medium,’ ‘My Name is Earl’

CHICAGO – We told you a few weeks ago that “Heroes,” “Parks and Recreation,” and “Southland” had been renewed by NBC but the peacock network made it official today and made the call on the bubble shows, renewing “Chuck” and “Law & Order” and pulling the trigger on “Medium” and “My Name is Earl” although there are rumors of both shows being eyed by other networks.

With “The Jay Leno Show” taking up five nights of the week, there were very few spots on the fall schedule, but NBC was more creative than some expected with their programming, refusing to play it safe and knowing that they need a radical shake-up.

Photo credit: Mitchell Haaseth/NBC

They’ll get that shake-up as only Tuesday and Sunday will remain unchanged in the fall (except, of course, for Leno). “The Biggest Loser” returns on Tuesday nights for two hours and football dominates Sunday nights.

Mondays will launch with “Heroes” and lead in to a new show called “Trauma”. Official new show descriptions are available at the bottom of the article.

Wednesdays start with another TV take on the Ron Howard show “Parenthood,” followed by “Law & Order: Special Victims Units.”

Thursdays are a little complicated. “30 Rock” comes back late, usually in October. So, until it does, “SNL Weekend Update Thursday” will start the night, followed by “Parks and Recreation,” “The Office,” and the new “Community”. When “30 Rock” comes back, it gets the 8:30 CST slot and “Community” jumps back to 8pm.

“Southland” moves to the middle slot on Fridays, led in by the original “Law & Order,” tying “Gunsmoke” for the longest-running show with the announcement of its 20th season.

The wasteland of Saturday consists of “Dateline NBC” and encore broadcasts of “Trauma” and “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”.

“Chuck” will return mid-season and reportedly got a 13-episode order. New shows “Day One,” “100 Questions,” “Mercy,” and “The Marriage Ref” will also premiere mid-season and “The Celebrity Apprentice” will return then as well. No word on when or if the network will air “Friday Night Lights” in its post-DirectTV run this year as it was reported earlier that they would.

New fall show descriptions:

Photo credit: Mitchell Haaseth/NBC

“Community”

From Emmy Award-winning directors Joe and Anthony Russo (“Arrested Development”) comes “Community,” a smart comedy series about higher education…and lower expectations. The student body at Greendale Community College is made up of high-school losers, newly- divorced housewives, and old people who want to keep their minds active as they circle the drain of eternity. Within these not-so-hallowed halls, “Community” focuses on a band of misfits, at the center of which is a fast-talkin’ lawyer whose degree has been revoked (Joel McHale, “The Soup”), who form a study group and, in “Breakfast Club” fashion, end up learning a lot more about themselves than they do about their course work.

In addition to McHale, the series also stars Gillian Jacobs (“The Book of Daniel”); Yvette Nicole Brown (“Rules of Engagement”); Danny Pudi (“Greek”); Alison Brie (“Mad Men”); and comedy legend Chevy Chase (“Chuck”). “Community” is produced by Krasnoff Foster Entertainment, Harmonious Claptrap and Murray Hill in association with Sony Pictures Television. Russ Krasnoff (“The Soloist”), Dan Harmon (“The Sarah Silverman Program”), Joe Russo (“Arrested Development”), Anthony Russo (“Arrested Development”) and Gary Foster (“The Soloist”) serve as executive producers. Joe and Anthony Russo directed the pilot that was written by Dan Harmon.

“Parenthood”

Photo credit: Mitchell Haaseth/NBC

From the executive producers of the box-office hit “Parenthood,” Ron Howard and Brian Grazer (Oscar winners for “A Beautiful Mind”), and writer/executive producer Jason Katims (“Friday Night Lights”), this contemporary re-imagining of the blockbuster film depicts the colorful and imperfect Braverman family - four grown siblings sharing the headaches, heartaches, and joy of being parents. The star-studded cast includes Peter Krause, Maura Tierney, Craig T. Nelson, Dax Shepard, Bonnie Bedelia, Monica Potter, Erika Christensen and Mae Whitman.

When Sarah Braverman (Tierney, “ER”), a financially strapped single mother, returns home to her parents and siblings in Berkeley, Calif., after packing up her Fresno apartment and uprooting her two inconvenienced kids, Amber (Whitman, “In Treatment”) and Drew (Miles Heizer, “ER”), she is greeted by her opinionated father, Zeek (Nelson, “Family Stone,” “Coach”), and strong mother, Camille (Bedelia, “Heart Like A Wheel”), who are privately dealing with their own marital issues. As Sarah is reunited with her siblings — sister, Julia (Christensen, “Traffic”), and brothers Crosby (Shepard, “Baby Mama”) and Adam (Krause, “Six Feet Under”) — all struggling with issues of their own, it’s clear that the Braverman reunion is just what they need to face the everyday challenges of modern family life. “Parenthood” is a production from Imagine Entertainment and Universal Media Studios. Emmy winner Thomas Schlamme (“The West Wing”) directs the pilot.

“Trauma”

Photo credit: Mitchell Haaseth/NBC

Pictured: Billy Lush as Bailey, Anastasia Griffith as Nancy, Cliff Curtis as “Rabbit”, Aimee Garcia as Marisa, Kevin Rankin as Tyler, Derek Luke as Boone — NBC Photo: Mitchell Haaseth

From executive producer Peter Berg (NBC’s “Friday Night Lights”) comes “Trauma,” the first high-octane medical drama series to live exclusively in the field where the real action is. Like an adrenaline shot to the heart, “Trauma” is an intense, action-packed look at one of the most dangerous medical professions in the world: first responder paramedics. When emergencies occur, the trauma team from San Francisco General is first on the scene, traveling by land, by sea or by air to reach their victims in time. From the heights of the city’s Transamerica Pyramid to the depths of the San Francisco Bay, these heroes must face the most extreme conditions to save lives — and give meaning to their own existence in the process. Starring in “Trauma” are Derek Luke (“Notorious”), Cliff Curtis (“10,000 B.C”), Anastasia Griffith (“Damages”), Aimee Garcia (“George Lopez”), Kevin Rankin (“Friday Night Lights”) and Jamey Sheridan (“Law & Order: Criminal Intent”). “Trauma” is a production of Universal Media Studios and Film 44. Berg, Sarah Aubrey (“Bad Santa,” “Friday Night Lights”), Dario Scardapane and Jeffrey Reiner (“Friday Night Lights”) serve as executive producers. The pilot was written by Scardapane and directed by Reiner.

By BRIAN TALLERICO Content Director HollywoodChicago.com brian@hollywoodchicago.com