NBC is shaking up its 2026 TV schedule. It was recently announced that medical drama Brilliant Minds will not be returning after its Winter Olympics hiatus and will instead be held off for later this season to resume the rest of Season 2. The Voice Season 29, meanwhile, will be taking over its slot with an extra hour. While it’s good news for fans of The Voice, it’s bad news for Brilliant Minds.
The Zachary Quinto-led series was one of the final shows on NBC to secure a spot on the 2025-26 schedule, and unfortunately, things are not looking up. Even though one might think that the network simply wants to capitalize on The Voice: Battle of Champions, that may not be the full story. According to TV Series Finale, ratings for the medical drama have dipped for Season 2 from Season 1, and it's NBC’s lowest-rated series where the key 18-49 demo is concerned. Beyond that, it's drawing one of the network's smallest viewerships.
Then there’s the fact that a series being pulled from the schedule suddenly, regardless of the reason, is usually not a good sign. Even with the intriguing storylines Brilliant Minds has had this season already, between Eric Dane’s guest appearance and the crazy flash forward, on top of losing two cast members, it might not be enough to keep the show going. It is still early, and nothing has been confirmed, but being pulled usually doesn’t end well.
As of now, a return date for Brilliant Minds has not been released, but it’s assumed to be sometime in the spring or summer. There are only six episodes left of the season, so the fact that NBC doesn’t even want to let Brilliant Minds run for a month and a half before Season 2 ends is certainly troubling. If anything, fans will be able to return to Bronx General in the near future, just not as soon as they initially thought.
Meanwhile, as for The Voice, NBC is going above and beyond for the new season, and not just by adding an extra hour. Some of The Voice's most utilized coaches — Kelly Clarkson, Adam Levine, and John Legend — will be returning for the special season, dubbed Battle of Champions, making it the first time that the panel of coaches consists of only three as they go head-to-head-to-head with new competitions, formats, and more. Not all of the changes make perfect sense, but it should be fun. Check out a trailer for it below.
As a Brilliant Minds fan, I could not be more disappointed that the show is being pulled from the schedule. Its future is not looking bright, but I am holding out hope that this does not indicate the end, but we’ll just have to wait and see. For now, all episodes of Brilliant Minds are streaming with a Peacock subscription, so while the show’s on a break, it would be a good time to do a rewatch.
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