NBC’s ‘Constantine’: Executives Comment on Potential for Season 2

NBC’s ‘Constantine’ has managed impressive turnaround in bringing fan eyes to the DC drama, but the network itself may not be so convinced of the show’s potential for season 2. Following the decision to keep its first season at 13 episodes, NBC executives have offered uncertain, if vaguely promising comments on the fate of ‘Constantine.’

Speaking on the general state of NBC from the ongoing TCA press tour, network heads Bob Greenblatt and Jennifer Salke answered an IGN question by expressing their disappointment with the show’s live ratings, potentially pointing to an over-saturation of comic-inspired TV series. Ending with a bit of optimism, Salke said:

We wish the show had done better live. It has a big viewership after [it airs] in all kinds of ways and it has a younger audience, but the live number is challenging. It hasn’t come out in the way we wanted it to, but we love the show. I think it’s fair to say we’re still talking about it.

Adds Greenblatt:

We got on the bandwagon of these shows based on comic books and maybe there are too many of them. It’s a popular series of comics, but it’s not ‘The Flash,’ it’s not Batman. So maybe it suffers a little bit there. But as Jen said, it’s a show we really like. We love Matt Ryan, who’s the star of it. I think we did right by the fans who didn’t like the film that was made of it. The future is still up in the air for that show.

The show returns later on tonight with 2015 premiere “The Saint of Last Resorts: Part 2,” while the following week’s “Quid Pro Quo” will introduce ‘Breaking Bad’ star Mark Margolis as DC villain Felix Faust. We’re inclined to think that ‘Grimm’’s multi-season survival, and other low-viewed cult-favorites like ‘Hannibal’ paint a promising portrait of ‘Constantine’’s future, but then again, NBC may have lost its patience.

What do you think? Does ‘Constantine’ have a future with NBC, or is it time to start warming up those Netflix rallying calls?