The Good Wife Creators Haven't Ruled Out The Possibility Of Diane And Cary Headlining A Spinoff

[Primetimer]

Anything is possible, including that.

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[swanjun]

I would watch the heck out of an Elsbeth Tascioni spinoff!

[Tetraneutron]

I wouldn't. She's exactly the kind of character that only works in small doses. I just wish TV networks would let successful properties die, and take chances on something new. 

[Ohmo]

I would watch the heck out of a spin-off period.  I like Cary, Diane, Luca, Eli, Marissa, and many, many of the ensemble characters.  I'd be perfectly happy to see this universe continue on without Alicia

[NateCon]

As much as Cary and Diane were central, I never felt like they got much focus from the writers. It always felt like they were concentrating on Alicia's (awful) storylines and thinking: "Now what can we do with Diane and Cary?" There's a lot of untapped potential in those characters.

[lynny]

I find it ironic that this big announcement aired during the Superbowl, considering that most Good Wife fans probably have consistent outrage at football given the uncontrollable time overruns that screw up my DTVR every damn week!

[kwnyc]

Give Christine Baranski her own show. Also Alan Cumming. I'd watch 'em both. (Or a revival of Private Lives on Broadway...I'd watch that, too).

[milkyaqua]

Carrie Preston is already supposed to be signed to do "Crowded" which is supposed to premiere in March so I highly doubt you'll be seeing Elsbeth in anything.

 

I don't see spinning Diane and Cary off on to a show of their a really good idea considering the Kings have another show they are more than likely going to devote their to so it makes no sense for them to consider doing this without some hard planning.

Edited February 8, 2016 by milkyaqua

[marny]

Please, not an Elsbeth spin-off. That episode (or was it 2?) they did a few seasons ago that revolved around her and Kyle McLachlan was way more Elsbeth than necessary. She works in small doses only.

[Inquisitionist]

She works in small doses only.

 

And barely then, in my opinion.

[Kromm]

End this piece of shit already. Also, while DIane is the least putrid part of it... I don't want a spinoff. Please no.

Oh, as for the Kings? They don't deserve to have a show, any show, ever again.

As kwnyc mentioned, Christine Baranski and Alan Cumming can get (and deserve) better work elsewhere. Nowhere near The Kings.

[MissLucas]

I loved Elsbeth but I always thought that she had walked right out of 'Ally McBeal' onto the TGW set. Come to think of it there were several characters that made me think that.

 

I say 'no' to a spin-off as I don't trust the Kings any longer. They had their chance with those characters and blew it - time to move on.

[zxy556575]

RIP, show. I don't think I'd be interested in more of the same again, only with Cary + Diane - Alicia, but if an actor's availability is irrelevant, I'd love a new series with Kalinda and Jason teaming up as morally ambiguous private investigators.

Edited February 9, 2016 by lordonia

[meisje]

Oh, as for the Kings? They don't deserve to have a show, any show, ever again.

 

Is this potential spinoff just a bunch of nonsense from CBS? Most sites covering TGW's cancellation (yeah, I'm calling it that...) have mentioned that the Kings already have a CBS summer show in production called BrainDead. That title has been the beginning and the end for me, but actually the cast suggests the pilot script may have, at least, been intriguing. 

 

As much as Cary and Diane were central, I never felt like they got much focus from the writers. It always felt like they were concentrating on Alicia's (awful) storylines and thinking: "Now what can we do with Diane and Cary?" There's a lot of untapped potential in those characters.

 

God yes, the time wasted writing Alicia's never-progressing story lines, it seems only JC received a similar level of interest from the producers/writers. I have little doubt Christine and Matt will land more work, and probably quickly, but I've really enjoyed them working in the same universe!

 

The plot lines have been so lacking and morose for the both of them recently that it takes a bit of work for me to recall that they once had a great dynamic and chemistry that was well worth tuning in for. I've really missed the time spent with both of their personal lives as well, just small things like a check-in with Diane's marriage or something to do with Cary's parents or love interest. They've both been turned into little more than caricatures, what a waste of their last 2 seasons. What I wouldn't give for all of the time spent on the past 3-4 seasons' worth of election bs to be retroactively relegated to Diane, Cary & others. Now that would be a show I would grieve. 

[ferretrick]

I'd watch a spinoff featuring all the crazy judges they've had over the years. And Good Wife is set in Chicago, so Dick Wolf can just come on board and add it to the Chicago Fire/P.D./Med/Janitors Union oeuvre.

[MostlyC]

a spinoff that would feature Diane and Cary.

Someone call CBS; I'd watch the hell out of this.

Both Baranski and Czuchry are brilliant, especially in these roles

[Readalot]

I will blindly follow Matt Czuckry (and Kyle Chandler) anywhere.

[Kromm]

Someone call CBS; I'd watch the hell out of this.

Both Baranski and Czuchry are brilliant, especially in these roles

Baranski is brilliant. Czuchry is just trying to do his best with the shit he's been fed for scripts for years and doesn't have the same impact as Baranski, but at least isn't embarrassing himself.

 

I'd like to see Czuchry try an outright comedy next, so I really don't want to see him in a spinoff of this, even if the horrible Kings WEREN'T in charge.

 

Baranski, in contrast, I'd like to see as a lead in something with a harder edge. Something Cable or On-Demand-ish, a Netflix project perhaps--something juicy. Or if she's not a lead, maybe a villain in something.

Edited February 9, 2016 by Kromm

[readster]

Czuchry just revealed he was going to be on the Gilmore Girls renewal Netflix series that is currently filming. So, while not a lock schedule since it is suppose to be just 4 mini movies. That does keep him busy for a few months. 

[AndySmith]

Spin-off Diane, Eli, and Cary (and maybe Robyn too) onto their own show, but not on a network. Have it on cable, have each season follow one season-long case, and have each season be 10 to 13 episodes. I'd watch that.

Edited February 9, 2016 by AndySmith

[whatsatool]

TGW jumped the shark when she kissed the private investigator. Wretched Wife. I'd watch a spin off.

[dinkysquid]

This is no surprise, especially when it was announced that the Kings had jumped ship. 

 

The last two seasons have so lost focus. The show was all over the map with this stupidity with Alicia's political aspirations, then Peter's, then all that stuff with Alicia leaves the firm, starts her own, goes back, doesn't go back. It was crazy! And I'm sure that JM's inflated ego got in the way. She was after all responsible for Kalinda (sp?) leaving and I did read somewhere that when she became producer, that's when things started to go downhill. 

 

Too bad. It used to be a very good show and it was the only drama that I watched on network. <Sigh> A hole now in my Sunday night. That is, until Game of Thrones and Veep but they're those once-a-year shows, although I did notice with TGW that they seemed to be off more than on. Between their Christmas hiatus, award shows and whatever, I wonder how many episodes a season they actually did? Oh yeah...and the damn football games ALWAYS screwed with my PVR!

 

Josh Charles was smart to have bailed. "The lifeboats are this way!"

[Inquisitionist]

TGW has done either 22 or 23 episodes every season, compared to 52 weeks in the year (i.e., less than half, but this is the standard for broadcast channel series nowadays).  I don't recall how often or whether CBS has aired reruns. 

[Noreaster]

This is no surprise, especially when it was announced that the Kings had jumped ship.

The last two seasons have so lost focus. The show was all over the map with this stupidity with Alicia's political aspirations, then Peter's, then all that stuff with Alicia leaves the firm, starts her own, goes back, doesn't go back. It was crazy! And I'm sure that JM's inflated ego got in the way. She was after all responsible for Kalinda (sp?) leaving and I did read somewhere that when she became producer, that's when things started to go downhill.

Too bad. It used to be a very good show and it was the only drama that I watched on network. <Sigh> A hole now in my Sunday night. That is, until Game of Thrones and Veep but they're those once-a-year shows, although I did notice with TGW that they seemed to be off more than on. Between their Christmas hiatus, award shows and whatever, I wonder how many episodes a season they actually did? Oh yeah...and the damn football games ALWAYS screwed with my PVR!

Josh Charles was smart to have bailed. "The lifeboats are this way!"

Discussed to death in the behind the scenes thread, but just wanted to point out that almost everything about the JM/AP situation is speculation.

A couple of things to note:

(1) AP has stated in interviews that she wanted to leave the show in season 4. She ended up leaving at the end of season 6 when her contract was up.

(2) JM has been a producer on the show since season 3. JM and AP shared scenes through the middle of season 4. Season 5, when the actresses shared no scenes together, got a ton of critical acclaim. Season 6, when there continued to be zero scenes between JM and AP, was inconsistent (although I still enjoyed some of the episodes) and some viewers blame the decline in quality on the lack of JM/AP scenes and JM's power/influence as producer. No one on the show has publicly admitted to any issues behind the scenes so viewers are all speculating.

[pennben]

Oh, good lord, as I read back last year,  the Kings already have another show lined up.  The synopsis:

 

 

 

BrainDead, which is slated to premiere in Summer 2016, follows a young fresh-faced Hill staffer getting her first job in Washington, D.C. and discovering two things: The government has stopped working, and alien spawn have come to Earth and eaten the brains of a growing number of Congressmen and Hill staffers. We wanted to do a show that was a mix of genre-pulp and high-brow politics,” said the Kings in a statement. “It seemed like the best way to address the news today — not straight, but as the opening act of a horror movie.”

 

Seriously, let's let the King's focus on this idiocy.  Let's not let them get a vote on Baranski's and Czuchy's future endeavors.  I believe in B&C to do better than any more nonsense that the King's would throw at them or that is just there as a residual of being on this show.

Edited February 10, 2016 by pennben

[kdm07]

Oh, good lord, as I read back last year,  the Kings already have another show lined up.  The synopsis:

 

 

 

Seriously, let's let the King's focus on this idiocy.  Let's not let them get a vote on Baranski's and Czuchy's future endeavors.  I believe in B&C to do better than any more nonsense that the King's would throw at them or that is just there as a residual of being on this show.

 

100% with you. I have had enough of the Kings and I don't want them having a say over actors/actresses I like ever again.

[wendyg]

I really don't understand this hate for the Kings. They gave us two brilliant years of a great show, followed by two good, if uneven, years, followed by a terrific half-year. Plus I actually thought the Cary under threat first half of the sixth season was pretty good (if only to watch Linda Lavin). Granted, much of the rest of season 6 and this year have been retreading the same old water (and pretty badly at that), but isn't it arguable that part of the reason is that the Kings are giving most of their attention to getting their *new* show off the ground? The first two years of this show, however, more than qualify them to do two years of something new.

 

That said, other than the horror element, the new show sounds like a similar setup to TGW: relative newcomer's naivete fades in a series of personal encounters with a large system with power over many people, where the only way to get anything done is to become morally suspect yourself.

[Noreaster]

I think people just have a selective memory. Cary had a really meaty storyline last season and the actor was given a lot to do (I just think the actor isn't very good). Christine Baranski is awesome and when the show is able to secure great guest stars (Oliver Platt, Gary Cole) for her to play against, her storylines are some of my favorites. The "marginalized" AP probably got the most screentime other than JM. The Kalinda character is just not that complex and attempts to make the character more interesting with the ex-husband storyline didn't work out. I don't know if AP has much range. Even AP's new role in her recently announced pilot sounds like the same note she was playing on TGW.

The Kings have put on a very good show for a long time. How many other broadcast network shows have been consistently good for as long as TGW has? How many acclaimed dramas have been on for as many episodes as TGW has? I would argue that the Kings didn't really have seven seasons worth of good storylines for this show, but otherwise they have been pretty good showrunners.

[Noreaster]

More on-topic with the title of this thread...I posted this in the media thread yesterday, but in the Kings' discussion of the potential spin-off, they don't really mention the Cary and Diane characters. Their comments focused on the Elsbeth and Patty Nyholm characters and building new ensembles for one of them. Also since the studio's and network's decision to end TGW was only made in the last week or so, I doubt that there has been much planning for the spinoff by anyone.

http://www.accesshollywood.com/articles/good-wife-bosses-talk-ending-show-spinoff-potential/

[pennben]

For me, as good as the first 4 or 5 years were, and full credit to the kings for that, these last two seasons have not been good at all, so they are out of my favor at the moment. As I think their political stories have always been a weak link, not to mention I find zombie stories silly, I have no interest in their new show.

[stopthestatic]

Maybe it's an unpopular opinion but I actually liked season 6 for the most part. Especially when I rewatched. 

 

Season 7, on the other hand, has been complete garbage.

[Kromm]

More on-topic with the title of this thread...I posted this in the media thread yesterday, but in the Kings' discussion of the potential spin-off, they don't really mention the Cary and Diane characters. Their comments focused on the Elsbeth and Patty Nyholm characters and building new ensembles for one of them.

So they want to do The Practice-->Boston Legal pretty much, eh?

[Kathyk1024]

I liked season 6, too. Mind's Eye which the writers forgot they wrote is nominated for a WGA award for best episodic drama to be awarded 2/13.

Alicia said, "Goodbye" to Will in that episode LAST year.

[meisje]

The Kings have put on a very good show for a long time. How many other broadcast network shows have been consistently good for as long as TGW has? How many acclaimed dramas have been on for as many episodes as TGW has? I would argue that the Kings didn't really have seven seasons worth of good storylines for this show, but otherwise they have been pretty good showrunners.

 

They really did, and yet I can't excuse the drop off in quality for a number of reasons. They've maintained that their vision for TGW has always been 7 seasons, so it leaves me wondering why the working elements have been missing for 2 of those now? It would almost be better to say, "Well, we envisioned 4 or 5 years, but were so successful that we had to go back to the drawing board to create more story," that would at least not put them in the position of basically getting what they hoped and planned for, but not having the focus or chops to do it.

 

Network shows really do have a lot of my sympathy in many respects, but TGW hasn't had to suffer the typical network pitfalls in that CBS has really been a haven for the show. CBS needed and wanted the critical acclaim and are well known for meeting the creative and financial demands of their stars & showrunners. They are the network, out of main 3 or 4, that rarely threatens to shut production when cast members band together for millions per episode; they aren't very quick to cancel shows that are on the bubble or just to make room for fresh meat; and they advertise the hell out of things. They have the ridiculous finances of a huge network, but they occasionally play by cable rules. The Kings, IMO, have received a great deal of support in a myriad of ways. I can find no explanation for why the writers just let the seams dissolve or why they can't build anything of substance with a new character, or stay with anything already substantive. If it was a matter of needing more writers, I have no doubt CBS would have given the go-ahead or that they haven't already had a lot of free reign in that area.

 

TGW is not the only show where I wince with frustration at the showrunners' apparent lack of interest in seeing their own creation through, it's certainly happened to me before, and it's always frustrating and bewildering to me. I realize that, when you're several years in on a project and you're still hot, it's a time when a lot of people start putting out feelers for the next project, but the projects that really go down in history as excellent are those in which the creators/showrunners stayed involved and present until filming was done. 

 

The idea that they would do a spinoff is kind of nuts given that they've been at least partially checked out for some time. They've had an amazing supporting cast to write for and that ball has been dropped like it's radioactive. 

[wendyg]

I agree that the spinoff talk is weird.

 

I just wanted to note some numbers.

Number of BREAKING BAD episodes: 62

Number of MAD MEN episodes: 92

Number of GOOD WIFE episodes: 150 (up to Feb 28, so final tally probably 157)

Number of BUFFY episodes: 143

(To take an example of a previously good show that was absolutely horrid by the end)

Number of HOUSE episodes: 176 (ditto)

 

People run out of ideas after a certain point. Unfortunately, that's the business.

[las68]

I'd watch a spinoff featuring all the crazy judges they've had over the years. And Good Wife is set in Chicago, so Dick Wolf can just come on board and add it to the Chicago Fire/P.D./Med/Janitors Union oeuvre.

 

I was thinking the same thing.  I'm pretty sure Chicago Law is really going to happen, so why not add the crazy judges to the cast as well as Diane & Cary?  I'd watch!

[Noreaster]

I'm in the camp who thinks season 6 was good. I thought Mind's Eye was fantastic and there were a bunch of other really good episodes. But there were also some bad ones.  I'm also liking season 7.  I don't care for the fact that the show is repeating some earlier storylines and character profiles but the acting remains top-notch and I find myself still enjoying the show overall.  

 

Regarding the Kings and their seven year plan, they probably did have a roadmap of how the show and the Alicia Florrick story would play out, but translating that to seven full network seasons is a different story.  The creative process is such that adjustments are constantly being made and people need to go back to the drawing board to figure out what works and what doesn't.  In the case of a big network show, they also need to take into account a lot of other opinions.  I still suspect that the Alicia character was meant to win and serve the SA office last season, but that the show was forced to change gears. Inventing the election scandal and turning Alicia into a disgraced politician all in one episode seemed so abrupt to me.  

 

I don't really watch much network TV anymore, but I never viewed CBS as cable-friendly. It always seemed like the older, risk-averse network. I'm also pretty sure CBS had a great deal of input on The Good Wife based on various interviews over the years. For example, I remember reading the show needed to get approval on killing off Will Gardner.  Cast members banding together for a pay raise doesn't really happen that often, at least publicly, so I don't know if the lack of that happening on a CBS show means much. (Though didn't it sort of happen on CSI or HIMYM way back when?)

 

Like others have mentioned, the decline in quality is not really that surprising.  TGW has been on for many episodes.  What surprised me was actually how great season 5 was. There's also so much we don't know about how the show is run.  For all we know, the Kings may be on a 7-year contract themselves so even if they felt they were running out of ideas, they might still have needed to go on.  The show could have faced a myriad of other issues like budgetary concerns, scheduling availability, changes in the staff, etc. And I don't know if I'm stretching here, but I've kind of wondered whether the show's political storylines have been too "real" lately given the real-life political environment and Hillary Clinton running for president.  

 

Regarding the spinoff talk, I don't know if the Kings were really all that serious and whether anything is really on the horizon in the near future. Their comments seemed so non-committal.  My guess is they were just responding to questions posed to them.  

[Ohmo]

For me, I don't need or want the Kings, and it's not because I hate them.  They've been very clear that their focus was on Alicia.  What'd they once call it?  "The Re-education of Alicia Florrick" or something like that?  Fine, they've told that story, but in the course of doing so, I've found that I, as a viewer, became much more interested in the other stories that could be told (Eli and Marissa, Cary and Diane, and newest on the scene, Luca.) In the course of these seven years, many people have written for these characters.  I'd like to see one or two of them become EP and see what story they would tell with the universe still intact.  American Crime is telling a different story with many of the same actors.  This would be a different person telling a new story with the same actors.

 

CBS would probably have to pay the Kings something, but the network listed Donald Bellasario as EP for years after he left NCIS.  It was part of his exit deal.  A spin-off doesn't have to mean that ONLY the Kings can write it.  They can leave the universe and allow it to be done.

[bookherder]

Dick Wolf FTW! I'd like to see these characters in something more focused on legal (ish) work, than the emphasis on soap opera that was Alicia's story. Diane, David Lee, Lucca and Cary in a law firm. Maybe with Eli as a consultant, or a steady customer for legal help for his clients. You can have the weird judges and opposing lawyers, who, while fun, are best in small doses. A straight up legal drama.

[Hanahope]

I'd be fine with a spin-off that was Florrick Free.  Maybe they could get Kalinda back, she was much better than Jason.

[MissLucas]

Looks like Cary's out and Lucca's in: http://www.spoilertv.com/2016/05/the-good-wife-spinoff-starring.html

[Klapaucius]

Oh, I'm glad Matt Czuchry is out! Since Cary is the only character I still gave a damn about a spinoff with him would have forced me to watch it and I don't want to watch any spinoff.

[CleoCaesar]

My love for Matt Czuchry is possibly the only thing that would get me to watch that inevitable shit, so I too am glad he's out.

[MissLucas]

I love Christine Baranski and hope this is just a rumor.

[KaveDweller]

I don't know how they'd have this spin off about Lucca and Diane as lawyers in Chicago and never have Alicia come up at all? There are only three law firms in Chicago in this universe.

I have this issue with most spin offs, it's never natural when they try and break a character away from the universe they'd been interacting in for years. 

[Klapaucius]

5 hours ago, MissLucas said:

I love Christine Baranski and hope this is just a rumor.

I really like Christine. I just didn't like Diane so much by the end of the series. And I don't know why she's turning down other projects to do this spinoff.

Quote

Discussions for Baranski’s “Good Wife” spinoff are believed to have in the works for some time. Throughout pilot season, Baranski was the first choice for many lead roles in dramas and comedies across multiple broadcast networks, though she turned down all the offers, even one particular project that was extremely high-profile. Her team likely had the spinoff in mind when nixing offers for the newly-available star.

http://variety.com/2016/tv/news/the-good-wife-spinoff-christine-baranski-cush-jumbo-cbs-all-access-1201772883/

[pennben]

Christine Baranski belongs on the big screen; and by that I mean not on a spin-off to be placed on the CBS "all-access" pay website to try to provide traction for CBS against Hulu/Netflix.

[jjj]

For about two seconds, I toyed with the idea of trying CBS AllAccess again if Diane and Eli would be on the screen; but CBS AllAccess is awful, and does not even provide the option of having commercial-free viewing, like Hulu does for a small extra fee.  CBS needs to deal with the core problems of its streaming site, or strike a deal with Hulu like ABC did, if it wants to pull in more viewers.  This trick is not going to do it. 

[tom87]

It's Official: CBS All Access Orders 'Good Wife' Spinoff Starring Christine Baranski, Cush Jumbo

Creators Robert and Michelle King are set to co-write the first episode but will not run the series.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/good-wife-spinoff-cbs-upfront-895242?utm_source=twitter

Edited May 18, 2016 by tom87

[pennben]

To be honest, assuming this gets good reviews and CBS Access remains such that you can sign up for a month and then cancel, I'll take a look when it's done. I'm pretty much done signing up for more and more pay sites along with my cable bill.