Thursday, June 17, 2004
Networks Seek Ratings in Higher Power
Sitcoms are running out of laughs, cop dramas are a dime a dozen and reality shows are all starting to look alike. Now U.S. television networks are turning to a higher power in their quest for loftier ratings.
Inspired by the runaway success of religion-themed novels like the "Left Behind" series and Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ," broadcasters are devoting more of their prime-time schedules to shows dealing with God, faith and the afterlife.
Two such shows, "Joan of Arcadia," the story of a teen-age girl who speaks to God, and "Tru Calling," about a clairvoyant young morgue attendant with the power to "relive" the previous day and help prevent deaths, are coming back for second seasons this fall on CBS and Fox, respectively.
They will join the return of the WB network's veteran drama "7th Heaven," centered on the family of a minister, and Showtime's darkly comic afterlife series "Dead Like Me."
And NBC is launching two new spiritual dramas of its own -- "Medium," starring Patricia Arquette as a suburban housewife who helps solve crimes by communicating with the dead, and "Revelations," an apocalyptic thriller featuring Bill Pullman as a scientist racing to thwart Armageddon.
It's not as big a trend as the TV westerns that galloped over the small screen during the 1960s or the "reality" craze of recent years, but the upcoming batch of faith-oriented series marks a new high point in prime-time piety.
Della Reese, an ordained minister and former gospel singer who starred in the CBS hit "Touched an Angel," sees it as a sign that spirituality has finally become "fashionable."
"We think this is something that's been out there for years and has actually been untapped," NBC Entertainment President Kevin Reilly said. "The world is in turmoil right now, and when it is, you tend to see people going for conspiracy theories, going to apocalyptic stories and spirituality."
He cited the growing popularity of books like the "Left Behind" novels, a 12-part drama about the second coming drawn from the Book of Revelation in the New Testament that has sold more than 60 million copies worldwide.
But religion also figures prominently in a host of bestsellers ranging from Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code," a modern thriller steeped in purported secrets about the early Christian church, to Bruce Wilkinson's "The Prayer of Jabez: How to Get God to Bless Your Life."
At the same time, inspirational and religious-themed music has become a growing pop genre in the recording industry.
Jana Riess, the religion book review editor for Publishers Weekly and author of "What Would Buffy Do? The Vampire Slayer as Spiritual Guide," said the notion of a divine approach to TV ratings growth makes sense.
"If they're looking for an untapped market, this is it," she said, noting polls that show most Americans profess a belief in God and nearly half counting themselves as born-again or evangelical Christians.
"Americans are a very religious people, but our popular culture expressions have not always reflected that," she said.
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