HBO renews 'Boardwalk Empire' for season 3
Prohibition-era mob drama won 8 Emmys last month
Nucky Thompson (Steve Buscemi) won't be going anywhere for a while now that HBO has renewed "Boardwalk Empire."
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Last fall, HBO ordered a second season of "Boardwalk Empire" only days after the first-ever episode had aired. This fall, HBO execs made Steve Buscemi, Terence Winter and company sweat it out just a bit more, announcing the third season renewal three weeks into season 2.
“Following a triumphant first season, I was eager to see what Terry Winter, Martin Scorsese and the rest of their stellar team had in store, and they continue to surpass our highest expectations,” HBO president Michael Lombardo said in a statement. “The response from the media and our viewers has been extremely gratifying.”
Ratings for the new season have been down from the season 1 averages - especially when you factor in the 4+ million people who watched the Martin Scorsese-directed series premiere - but ratings (whether for the Sunday at 9 airing alone, or combined numbers across all platforms, including On Demand and HBO Go) have never been the driver for these kinds of decisions at HBO. They're not dependent on advertising, so raw viewership numbers matter less than harder-to-quantify issues like how a particular show represents the channel's brand.
"Boardwalk" isn't cheap, and it wasn't the dominant Emmy force some were expecting before it premiered. (It won 8 Emmys last month, but 7 of those were in technical categories, and Scorsese's win for directing was practically pre-ordained from the moment the show was announced.) But it's a strong show with a lot of praise from the critics (including this one), and coming in at a shade below 3 million viewers for the most recent Sunday airing (before all the other timeslots and platforms are factored in) isn't bad at all, particularly after HBO saw the miniscule numbers for its two Monday comedy premieres this week, with "Bored to Death" drawing 240,000 viewers and "Enlightened" only 210,000.
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October 12, 2011 at 1:26PM EST Reply to CommentBoardwalk Empire is one of the best dramas on tv.
J. Pitts
October 12, 2011 at 2:03PM EST Reply to CommentSomeone on the last episodes comments compared this show more to Mad Men than to the Sopranos and I think I have to agree with that. The show is much slower and less action packed than the Sopranos. It's also a tad bit weird (see: the agent van alden storylines) Still, it's a great show.
PotatoSolution The BE writers have finally decided what to do with Agent Van Alden this season: he is comedy gold.
October 12, 2011 at 3:22PM ESTSareeta I agree with this comparison, though I find BE infinitely more interesting than MM, but not quite as interesting as The Sopranos.
October 12, 2011 at 6:39PM ESTChampSkins
October 12, 2011 at 3:05PM EST Reply to CommentThis season has really been a vast improvement over the first season. And that is coming from someone who really loved the first season.
Chaesonian
October 12, 2011 at 4:15PM EST Reply to CommentI would like to say, Boardwalk Empire is definitely a very good drama but as a simple viewer that catches every episode, I'd definitely wait to call it great. It has all the pieces but the show can be pretty laborious to watch at times. Until it stops being in love with simply having half an episode devoted to shock value at the "times" and devoted to more substance, I'd hardly say its one of the greats.
October 12, 2011 at 4:36PM ESTgladly Admittedly, I haven't read much about this period, so I'm used to typical Charleston-dancing flappers and crazy stock receipts. More traditional "roaring twenties" stuff. But, I've found Boardwalk Empire a lot more modern. It's the first time I've seen something that's made me see Prohibition as the prologue to the modern drug war. Same consolidation of cash, power, and crime in maintaining one black market. I'm getting very into the show this season.
October 12, 2011 at 10:29PM ESTbigperm33
October 12, 2011 at 6:16PM EST Reply to CommentI keep watching, and I like it, but I just don't love it. We DVR it and it is regularly the last show we get to. It can be real slow, and while that hasn't bothered me in shows like The Wire, Mad Men and parts of Breaking Bad, sometimes I have real trouble paying attention. It has its moments, but there really have not been enough of them. I think this show is built a lot on hype, notoriety, and the basic premise.
theholyavenger
October 12, 2011 at 6:21PM EST Reply to CommentI guess I should watch this season. The 1st season wasn't very impressive.
Kerry Reid
October 12, 2011 at 8:56PM EST Reply to CommentI'm slow on the uptake -- I just now figured out the in-joke with Van Alden renting the place with Lucy under the name "Mueller." It's the name of the current FBI director.
virginia
October 15, 2011 at 2:04PM EST Reply to CommentHurrah! Happy to hear this. Thanks, Mr. Sepinwall. This is a slow-marinating show and I have come to love it. It requires commitment and patience but those are rewarded.