Gavel Drops on Original Production of Sony’s Judge Hatchett

Sony Pictures Television Hopes to Offer ‘Theme Weeks’ of Repeats

By Paige Albiniak -- Broadcasting & Cable, 12/26/2007 2:48:00 PM

Sony Pictures Television’s Judge Hatchett is going out of original production after this year, the company confirmed Wednesday.

That said, Sony hopes to keep the show on the air. The studio is pitching TV stations “theme weeks” -- around such topics as divorce or interventions -- comprised of repeats. Judge Hatchett, featuring Judge Glenda Hatchett, is in its eighth season, giving the studio plenty of episodes to choose from. The studio also doesn’t expect to repeat any episodes during each 52-week TV season.

Daytime is so fragmented these days that it is unlikely that viewers have watched every episode of any given first-run show. As a result, studios have cut back on the number of original episodes they produce every year, and repeats appear more frequently -- a model that has proved economical for cable networks.

In the week ending Dec. 16 -- the most recent week for which national ratings are available -- Judge Hatchett averaged a 1.3 live-plus-same-day national household rating, tying for seventh place with Twentieth Television’s Cristina’s Court, which was renewed for a third season.