NBC Rules For A Second Season Of 'Night Court' Revival

Well, that's an official legal ruling. NBC has renewed the 2023 revival of television's "Night Court" just two weeks after the show's debut. The network has picked up the show for a second season.

The original sitcom ran on NBC from 1984 to 1992 for nine seasons and 192 episodes. The new series stars "The Big Bang Theory's" Melissa Rauch as Abby Stone, the daughter of the original series' Harry Stone, who serves as the night shift judge at the Manhattan Criminal Court. Following in her father's footsteps, she seeks to bring order to the Manhattan arraignment court's crew of oddballs and cynics.

John Larroquette returns from the original series as Dan Fielding. Formerly the assistant district attorney for the court, he returns in the new series as the public defender. The show also stars India de Beaufort, Kapil Talwalkar, and Lacretta.

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Actor Harry Anderson, who portrayed Judge Harry Stone in the original series, sadly passed away in 2018 at age 65. Markie Post, who portrayed Christine Sullivan in the original show, also passed away in 2021. She was 70 years old.

In the press release announcing the show's renewal, NBC boasted the series reached 25.7 million viewers across its viewing platforms since the show's Jan. 17 premiere. The show was also the No. 1 broadcast premiere of the 2022-23 season in the key 18-49 demographic and total viewers, along with scoring the No. 1 comedy premiere of the season on broadcast or cable in the key demo and total viewers.

Additionally, the show drew the highest total viewers for any comedy premiere since "The Connors" in 2018 and the best comedy premiere on NBC since "Will & Grace" in 2017.

Speaking on the announcement, NBCUniversal Television and Streaming of Scripted Content President Lisa Katz commented, "It’s so rewarding to have audiences respond and return to a show in which they have such incredibly warm feelings, and, more broadly, it’s a testament to how broadcast is still a huge driver of communal viewing." She continued, "A huge thank you to our studio partners, a wonderful cast, incredibly talented writers and producers, and a crew that has transformed a lower Manhattan courtroom into a true family."

Meanwhile, Warner Bros. Television Group Chairman and CEO Channing Dungey weighed in: "The verdict is in and the 'new-boot' of 'Night Court' is a hit! The series’ razor-sharp humor makes the show a weekly must-watch. We’re overjoyed that court will remain in session and return with new cases for season two. We’re so grateful to our colleagues at NBC, to the richly talented creative team led by Melissa Rauch, Winston Rauch, Dan Rubin and John Larroquette, and to the stellar ensemble cast."

The new series is written and executive produced by Dan Rubin. Rauch serves as executive producer alongside Winston Rauch. Larroquette is also a producer of the series.

New episodes of the "Night Court" revival are currently airing on Tuesday nights on NBC. Unfortunately, the original series doesn't appear to be streaming anywhere at the moment. Hopefully, the success of the revival might make the original become more accessible on streaming platforms soon.