Gotham, which was picked up straight-to-series by FOX last year for what was planned to be 16-episode first season, has just had its freshman run extended to 22 episodes following its much-watched premiere last month.
So while it’s being said that Gotham is getting a “full season order,” the reality is that FOX has simply extended Season 1’s original full order by six episodes.
Dana Walden and Gary Newman, chairmen and CEOs of Fox Television Group, gave the following statement on the news:
“Gotham debuted as one of the most buzzed-about shows of the fall, and with good reason. Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon have created an incredibly rich world, with characters that draw you in and a cast that brings to life these heroes and villains in a way we’ve never seen before. We are so excited to see where Bruno, Danny and the entire ‘Gotham’ team take this story over the course of this season, and so thankful to all the fans who have embraced it this fall.”
Gotham’s original 16-episode order was made back during former-FOX network chief Kevin Reilly’s “no pilot season” policy, where shows would be ordered and developed at any time of the year, picked up for shorter runs (like Sleepy Hollow and Almost Human, both with 13-episode first seasons) and then premiere at any time of the year the would benefit the primetime schedule. By upping Gotham to a full 22 episode run, FOX now definitely seems to be moving away from Reilly’s show development method.
Gotham debuts tonight with its fourth episode, Asylum. You can read our review on last week’s episode, Balloon Man, here
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