QUOTE
Just when you thought the wise guys were out, HBO's pulling 'em back in.
The cable net announced its intention to extend its top-rated series The Sopranos for a sixth season this morning after reaching an agreement with creator David Chase, who had hinted at the extra episodes last week.
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"I'm delighted that David Chase has decided to give us another chapter in the great Sopranos saga," said HBO CEO Chris Albrecht in a statement released by the network.
Chase, who's wavered on returning every season since the fourth, has agreed to produce an extra 10 episodes for the Mafia series' sixth and final installment--a compromise on the 13 episodes that have been typical of every other season.
The fifth season, currently in production, will air 13 episodes starting in March 2004. Production on the sixth season won't begin until early 2005, which means fans will have to wait at least another two years to find out what happens to their favorite New Jersey Mob family.
You expected different?
News of the return of Tony and his ziti-sucking famiglia is particularly timely as the sixth and final season of HBO's other original programming cornerstone Sex and the City bows this weekend.
Industry watchers had predicted the cable net would try to persuade at least one of its star shows to stay on so that HBO could maintain its Sunday night stranglehold on Nielsen numbers.
In addition, the extra season will bring the total number of episodes produced to 75, a much more marketable number should the network try to shop the show for syndication. Since the series has only been available to about a third of the TV sets in the country, The Sopranos could be a slam-dunk for syndication for any other network with wider exposure.
Meanwhile, it's reportedly smiles all around on the set of The Sopranos. While no official announcement was made, the entire cast is expected to return for the sixth season, since recent contract negotiations included the possibility of an extra season.
That's a far cry from the attitude on set three months ago when star James Gandolfini threatened to quit over a salary dispute. Gandolfini's refusal to show up for work put the series' entire future in jeopardy until executive producer Brad Grey arranged a sit-down to resolve the feud brewing between the network and the TV don.
The effort was apparently worth the headache. "When you produce a show as rewarding as The Sopranos, you obviously want it to continue," Grey said in a statement Wednesday.
The cable net announced its intention to extend its top-rated series The Sopranos for a sixth season this morning after reaching an agreement with creator David Chase, who had hinted at the extra episodes last week.
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
E! News Live Top5 Videos
"I'm delighted that David Chase has decided to give us another chapter in the great Sopranos saga," said HBO CEO Chris Albrecht in a statement released by the network.
Chase, who's wavered on returning every season since the fourth, has agreed to produce an extra 10 episodes for the Mafia series' sixth and final installment--a compromise on the 13 episodes that have been typical of every other season.
The fifth season, currently in production, will air 13 episodes starting in March 2004. Production on the sixth season won't begin until early 2005, which means fans will have to wait at least another two years to find out what happens to their favorite New Jersey Mob family.
You expected different?
News of the return of Tony and his ziti-sucking famiglia is particularly timely as the sixth and final season of HBO's other original programming cornerstone Sex and the City bows this weekend.
Industry watchers had predicted the cable net would try to persuade at least one of its star shows to stay on so that HBO could maintain its Sunday night stranglehold on Nielsen numbers.
In addition, the extra season will bring the total number of episodes produced to 75, a much more marketable number should the network try to shop the show for syndication. Since the series has only been available to about a third of the TV sets in the country, The Sopranos could be a slam-dunk for syndication for any other network with wider exposure.
Meanwhile, it's reportedly smiles all around on the set of The Sopranos. While no official announcement was made, the entire cast is expected to return for the sixth season, since recent contract negotiations included the possibility of an extra season.
That's a far cry from the attitude on set three months ago when star James Gandolfini threatened to quit over a salary dispute. Gandolfini's refusal to show up for work put the series' entire future in jeopardy until executive producer Brad Grey arranged a sit-down to resolve the feud brewing between the network and the TV don.
The effort was apparently worth the headache. "When you produce a show as rewarding as The Sopranos, you obviously want it to continue," Grey said in a statement Wednesday.
Source
Pity that people think that they are bigger than the shows they star on. I hope that they will make it like 22 episodes though, instead of the 13 that they stick to. This is one of those shows that (for me) gets better as it goes along.