CBS Crushed The Competition With Tracker And Matlock, But I'm More Impressed By The Audience Sizes For Its Cancelled Shows

Spring is the usual renewal/cancellation time of year for network TV shows, and CBS made early calls for many of its shows in the 2025 TV schedule. A whopping nine series were renewed at once back in late February, while Watson had to wait a bit longer but still got the good news. Some shows did get the axe, however, and it turns out that a few of those were cancelled despite ranking in the Top 20 most-watched network shows of the 2024-2025 season so far. While Tracker and Matlock crushed the competition, I'm really eyeing the numbers for Blue Bloods and two of the three FBI shows.

CBS celebrated another successful year of ratings wins in late April, hitting a record 17th consecutive season as the most-watched TV network, with seven of the top ten shows. It wasn't particularly surprising that Justin Hartley's Tracker held on to its top spot of the largest audience from last season, while Matlock was a breakout hit last fall with leading lady Kathy Bates.

No, those mega hit shows doing well didn't come as a particularly interesting reveal. It was the totals for a few other shows that made the Top 20 in Nielsen's Live+7 numbers through mid-April that earned a second look from me. Take a look at the audience sizes:

• Tracker: 10.84 million (renewed)
• Matlock: 9.53 million (renewed)
• FBI: 8.11 million (renewed for two more seasons)
• Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage: 7.98 million (renewed)
• Blue Bloods: 7.9 million (cancelled)
• NCIS: 7.86 million (renewed)
• Elsbeth: 7.78 (renewed)
• Ghosts: 7.29 million (renewed for two more seasons)
• Watson: 6.66 million (renewed)
• FBI: Most Wanted: 6.49 million (cancelled)
• FBI: International: 6.49 million (cancelled)
• Fire Country: 6.15 million (renewed)

Of CBS' three cancelled shows on the Top 20 ranking, none of them were actually the least popular in Live+7, which really makes their ends sting a bit more. Blue Bloods was at #5 across all of network television in its final season! Sure, Donnie Wahlberg is getting a spinoff, but Tom Selleck wasn't ready for the show to end.

Then, of course, we have FBI: Most Wanted and FBI: International being cancelled despite edging out Max Thieriot's Fire Country in the Top 20, and barely falling behind Morris Chestnut's Watson. I'll admit that I thought the writing was on the wall for International as soon as the dubiously titled FBI: CIA pilot was announced, since it would likely be easier (and possibly cheaper) to produce another spinoff in the U.S. than in Europe. Still, I didn't know just how well both shows were still doing in recruiting audiences.

CBS axed some other series as well, although those weren't reaching the kinds of numbers to place them on network TV's Top 20. Shemar Moore's S.W.A.T. was cancelled for the third and presumably final time, while freshman comedy Poppa's House ended this spring. Manu Bennett's The Summit won't be back, and the wait is on for news about Queen Latifah's The Equalizer.

Elsewhere in primetime, only seven shows from networks other than CBS made the Top 20. They include NBC's Chicago Fire at #8, Chicago Med at #10, Chicago P.D. at #13, and The Voice at #18. ABC's High Potential came in at #12, with Will Trent at #14 and 9-1-1 just making the cut at #19.

Will the numbers for the cancelled shows change any behind-the-scenes decisions at CBS? Almost certainly not, although I would have loved to see at least FBI: Most Wanted rescued and moved to streaming for fans with a Paramount+ subscription. Other networks likely would have loved to reach the kinds of numbers that CBS has had with its cancelled shows.