Television News

The Showtime drama starring Michael C. Hall​ as a serial killer who targets other serial killers has officially been renewed for a sixth season. It's no surprise really considering the show is on pace to post its highest ratings ever with its upcoming finale. The Nov. 28 episode "In the Beginning" drew the second-highest number of viewers in the series' ratings history, just shy of the Season 4 finale. The steady growth could mean big things for the most recent episode, "Hop a Freighter," and the Dec. 12 finale. "'Dexter' is the best suspense drama on television," says David Nevins, Showtime's President of Entertainment. "To grow its audience so significantly in its fifth…

ABC has renewed Last Man Standing for a third season. The sophomore comedy, starring comedian Tim Allen, earned decent ratings in its new Friday night time slot, where it was moved after Season 1, where it initially aired Tuesdays. (Source: TV Line) Click here to view the article

CBS has pulled freshman comedy The McCarthys from its schedule effective immediately. Since its October premiere, the series has struggled to find a sizable audience in its Thursday night time slot behindTwo and a Half Men. The move, which effectively cancels the show, comes after its 11th episode, cutting its season short by four of a total of 15 episodes ordered. Get Your Very Own Self Defense Keychain: just click here Click here to view the article

On Sunday's (Dec. 5) holiday episode, the show concludes with an all-puppet segment that features the "Firework" singer. It's a nod to The Muppets, not only The Muppet Show but also "Sesame Street," the PBS children's show that had yanked Perry's music video with Elmo from its broadcast because of negative attention paid to her low-cut dress. The tone and dialogue is classic "Muppet Show," and when the Mr. Burns puppet celebrates, he echoes Kermit's stiff armed, head back posture. "Yay!" It's all a little disturbing, but we do like Grandpa Simpson and his pal Jasper Beardly playing the Statler and Waldorf roles in the balcony. <span style='font-family:"Arial, Helv…

CBS announced today that Mike & Molly has been renewed for a fourth season. Today's announcement by the network included a slew of pick-ups for the 2013-2014 season, ensuring that a large portion of their current line-up will remain the same. Other shows receiving good news today include 2 Broke Girls, The Good Wife, Elementary, The Mentalist, and Person of Interest. Still awaiting news include Two and a Half Men, CSI:NY, Vegas, and Criminal Minds. (Source: TV by the Numbers) Click here to view the article

IFC has cancelled The Birthday Boys after two seasons. The sketch comedy series aired a total of 20 episodes during 2013 and 2014. With word of the news, the cast posted a message on the show's Facebook page thanking the fans and the network. Get Your Very Own Self Defense Keychain: just click here Click here to view the article

The AMC drama finished its six-episode freshman season Sunday night (Dec. 5), drawing more than 6 million total viewers in the 10 p.m. hour. With repeat airings at 11 p.m. and 1 a.m., the total audience number swells to 8.1 million. The real boast, however, is the 4 million viewers in the 18-49 adult demo, the largest of any drama in basic cable history. Overall, the season averaged 3.5 million in the 18-49 demo, the best average of any basic cable drama going back to 1993. In the series finale, the group of survivors discover that their sanctuary at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is not the paradise they imagined. "The Walking Dead" has been renewed for …

TBS has announced that Men at Work has been renewed for a third season. The multi-camera workplace comedy will return in early 2014 with 10 new episodes. (Source: TV by the Numbers) Click here to view the article

ABC can't handle the The (Whole) Truth. Although the network was going to burn off the remainder of the legal drama's 13 episodes, they've reconsidered and decided to run reruns of Modern Family and Cougar Town in its place on Dec. 8, 15 and 29. Once Jan. 12 rolls around, midseason replacement "Off the Map" will debut in that slot. [The Hollywood Reporter] Have an appetite for satiric pop culture news? You're in luck. Joel McHale has signed a new two-year deal with E! as host of The Soup so we'll still get a double dose of Joel-y goodness with him over on NBC's Community. He'll also host the upcoming Independent Spirit Awards on Feb. 26. [Deadline] Neil Patrick Harris w…

TV Land has cancelled Happily Divorced after two seasons. The Fran Drescher comedy, which aired its now-series finale in February of this year, aired a total of 34 episodes since premiering in the summer of 2011. (Source: Deadline) Click here to view the article

Prior to the season finale of "Boardwalk Empire" Sunday night (Dec. 5), HBO aired a 10-minute making-of/preview special for "Game of Thrones." It was the usual mix of teaser footage, behind-the-scenes info and talking heads with the cast and crew -- but it was also the first extended look fans have gotten at the show. The video -- which features interview segments with author George R.R. Martin, whose novels form the basis of the series, as well as creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss -- is at the end of the post. But we also wanted to share a few new photos HBO has posted of the cast. Up above is Sean Bean ("The Lord of the Rings") as Eddard "Ned" Stark, and below is L…

HBO announced today that Game of Thrones has been renewed for a fourth season. The pick-up comes just days after the medieval drama's season 3 premiere, which hit a series high in viewership with an average 4.4 million viewers for its 9:00pm airing. There is no word on the number of episodes planned for Season 4 of Game of Thrones but an order of 10 is likely, which would be in line with the show's first three seasons. (Source: TV by the Numbers) Click here to view the article

He's not talking about himself. O'Neill was the only adult member of the show's cast not nominated for an Emmy, but the winner in his category -- outstanding supporting actor in a comedy -- was one of his castmates,Eric Stonestreet. O'Neill does, however, think that his on-screen wife, Sofia Vergara, deserved the comedy supporting actress over Jane Lynch of "Glee." "I love Jane, honestly I do," O'Neill told a group of international reporters at a recent press conference, according to TV Guide Canada. "I'm dying to star in one of Christopher Guest's movies alongside her, but I don't think she should have gotten the Emmy for that part. [Her character Sue Sylvester] is just …

Following Monday's strong Season 2 finale, word is out that the network liked what it saw and wants the drama to come back for more. And the news of the renewal comes straight from someone who should know, executive producer John Coveny. Coveny spoiled the A&E press release department's thunder and announced the good word on Twitter with the following: "Thanks to the 5 million plus weekly fans (live+7). Young and older skewing alike! The call just came: SEASON 3 for #Longmire is a GO!" (Source: Twitter) Click here to view the article

Last week, the whole gang's Thanksgiving was interrupted by the Portland police bursting in to take Tasha (Ksenia Solo) into custody after she hit Trey, Lux's former foster father. When the state department decides to press charges against Tasha, the whole family rallies around her to support her. When Zap2it last spoke to Britt Robertson, she told us firmly that despite her recent preoccupation with Eric (Shawn Sipos), Tasha is still one of the most important people in Lux's life. "They're each other's beginning," Robertson says. "Tasha's the one person in Lux's life that I think she really, really, completely trusts. She's been Lux's family since she was seven years ol…

HBO announced tuesday that after seven seasons on the air, True Blood will be concluding the series. The show's previously-announced seventh season of 10 episodes will premiere in summer 2014. By the time the final episode of True Blood is broadcast next year, the show will have aired a total of 80 episodes over six years, of which during that time it was consistently one of HBO's most popular series. (Source: TV by the Numbers) Click here to view the article

Ty Burrell says that we can look forward to his character Phil Dunphy and wife Claire (Julie Bowen​) getting amorous, but we're not the only ones to witness the action. "This week we're taping an episode where the kids walk in on us while we're having sex," tells Ty. "It's a full 22-minute sex scene. Actually, it's sitcom sex, definitely appropriate." We didn't really expect ABC to go too racy with their Emmy-winning show with "family" in the title, but we do expect the subject to turn to the birds and the bees. "There's a difficult chat with the kids," Burrell confirms. "Phil comes through with shining colors as usual." Burrell won't be getting quite that much action on …

Fans of AMC's The Killing will be saddened to hear that the series has been cancelled once again. The cable network has decided not to bring the crime drama back for a fourth season. Originally cancelled after Season 2, The Killing was revived after a strong backlash from fans when it was made known that a third season was not planned. Season 3 returned to decent ratings but ultimately ended flat compared with Season 2's numbers, which led to the show's cancellation in the first place. (Source: Deadline) Click here to view the article

Breaking Bad, 30 Rock, Modern Family and Boardwalk Empire lead the pack with the most nominations -- though fan favorites like "Friday Night Lights," "Lost" and "The Good Wife" are each represented as well. Recent years have seen WGAs go to "Mad Men," "30 Rock" and "House." Here's a partial list of this year's contenders: Dramatic Series "Boardwalk Empire" "Breaking Bad" "Dexter" "Friday Night Lights" "Mad Men" Comedy Series "30 Rock" "Glee" "Modern Family" "Nurse Jackie" "The Office" New Series "Boardwalk Empire" "Justified" "Men of a Certain Age" "Treme" "The Walking Dead" Episodic Drama "Boom" ("The Good Wife") "The Chrysanthemum and the Sword" ("Mad Men") "The End"…

BBC America has decided to cancel Copper after two seasons on the air. The period drama was the cable network's first original scripted drama, but ultimately failed to attract a large enough audience in its second season. (Source: The Hollywood Reporter) Click here to view the article

In "By the Light of the Moon," Tyler Lockwood, Mystic Falls' resident bully with a heart of gold, transforms into a werewolf in an excruciating scene that took two days to shoot. If you're anything like us, you're anticipating Mystic Falls' next full moon with an unsettling blend of excitement and dread. We couldn't wait to find out what happens, so Zap2it hit the show's Atlanta set this week -- with our shaky flip video camera in tow -- to get the scoop from the cast. There is one thing that everyone from Michael Trevino's co-stars to showrunners Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec agreed on unanimously: this is Trevino's episode to shine, and it's a story that's been well-…

Freshman drama King & Maxwell has been cancelled by TNT after one season. The short-lived series ran for 10 episodes over the summer between June and August, where it averaged 3.1 million total viewers. (Source: The Hollywood Reporter) Click here to view the article

And now one of our favorite shows is doing its own take on the medium. "I love those specials," says "Community's" creator and executive producer Dan Harmon. "They have huge emotional value to me, because most of them are on the theme of awkward people realizing that it's okay for them to be awkward. That's what the 'Community' version of it is, as well." In the holiday episode, Abed (played by Danny Pudi​) wakes to find himself in a stop motion winter wonderland. The gang soon joins him for what ultimately becomes an exploration of Abed's brain. "It's a weird art form. It's about being meticulous, but also being completely off-the-wall," Harmon explains. "And that's very…

FX announced yesterday that freshman series The Bridge has been renewed for a second season. The critically acclaimed drama has been enjoying a successful run since debuting in July, averaging 3.65 million total viewers and 1.68 million among Adults 18-49. Two episodes remain in the show's first season. Season 2 of The Bridge will return in summer 2014 with 13 new episodes. (Source: TV by the Numbers) Click here to view the article

In "All the Way," Alex (Lyndsy Fonseca​) gets yet another chance at a mission. For a recruit, she sure does get into the field a lot. She's posing as a photographer and the assistant to a wedding planner, but really she's supposed to get to the leader of a crime syndicate. As usual, Nikita (Maggie Q) helps her from the outside, but the mission is compromised in a surprising way, causing some desperate measures to be taken. We don't want to spoil too much of what will happen, but certain information (and photos) have been released that we feel comfortable teasing a few things now that we've watched our advance screener. For those who'd prefer their viewing experience to re…