NBC Lost Its Next Big Franchise Because Of One Simple Mistake

MovieStillsDB Published Aug 1, 2026, 9:45 AM EDT Shealyn Scott is a Senior Writer at Screen Rant. She has been writing for the site since 2024, focused on network, reality, streaming, and classic television. A creative writer, journalist, and lover of the written word in all its forms, Shealyn enjoys deconstructing scenes from her favorite shows, using context clues and historical precedent to predict major plot points (which, due to her successful track record, has sparked rumors of clairvoyance). As an award-winning student journalist, Shealyn spent her college years advocating for the humanities while studying English Literature. Her love of storytelling propelled her to expand her degree with minors in Writing and History, believing life to be a mere collection of stories that can be framed in as many ways as a movie scene. As a Senior member of the TV Team, Shealyn treats the series she covers like books, analyzing every line, camera angle, and lighting choice. Thankfully, her personal mission statement lines up perfectly with Screen Rant: every creative work deserves just as much thought from the viewer as it received from its creator. Sign in to your ScreenRant account NBC had the opportunity to revive a beloved franchise, but their attempt at expansion squandered its potential in one fell swoop. Nowadays, spinoffs, sequels, and prequels are all the rage, but very few exceed or even match the original source material's quality. For instance, Prime Video's Elle has met intense criticism for how it seemingly undercuts the point of 2001's Legally Blonde, while A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms furthers Game of Thrones' divisive legacy. Despite palpable dissatisfaction from viewers and critics alike, however, any familiar IP with a modicum of momentum can easily turn into a franchise-building bid. As such, when Suits— an offbeat legal drama from the USA Network's golden age— took off as an unexpected hit on Netflix, creator Aaron Korsh recognized the opportunity to be seized. NBC quickly began production on the next entry in the franchise, a short-lived spinoff called Suits LA. Sadly, the show was panned immediately following its series premiere, and the California-based legal drama wasn't able to find its footing before it was officially canceled ahead of its first— and last— season finale. There were many factors that contributed to the spinoff flopping, but the most intractable error came long before Suits LA was created. Truthfully, NBC fundamentally misunderstood the reason behind Suits' streaming success. The sleeper hit's 2023 renaissance wasn't proof that fans wanted a brand-new legal drama with an unfamiliar setting, main cast, and story. Rather, the original series took off because of its idiosyncrasies, which Suits LA couldn't replicate if it tried. Suits LA Failed To Satisfy Fans Of The OG Series Admittedly, there isn't a single reason to explain the failure of Suits LA. Considering the NBC drama wasn't initially conceptualized as part of the Suits universe, there was a tonal dissonance that bogged down Suits LA and obfuscated its true identity. While the cast was immensely talented, the overarching narratives and winding subplots felt unfocused and, at times, unnecessary. Plus, peppering in cameos from iconic characters like Harvey Specter (Gabriel Macht), Louis Litt (Rick Hoffman), and Daniel Hardman (David Costabile) hurt far more than it helped. Of course, arguably the most prominent issue Suits LA had is one that all spinoffs must contend with: its connection (or lack thereof) to its predecessor. Irrefutably, scene-stealers like Harvey, Louis, and Mike Ross (Patrick J. Adams) were the reason Suits took off when it was acquired by Netflix, but Suits LA didn't have fully realized characters to go toe-to-toe with the original cast. Unsurprisingly, protagonist Ted Black (Stephen Amell) was most heavily scrutinized, with many denigrating his role as a mere imitation of Harvey Specter. Yet, form and function don't always go hand-in-hand. Ted and Stuart Lane (Josh McDermitt) had an antagonist relationship reminiscent of Harvey and Louis in Suits season 1, but the circumstances surrounding their back-stabbing feud were a far cry from the lighthearted workplace rivalry of the original series. Consequently, Suits LA felt too disconnected and lacked the appeal of the flagship series, but any glaring similarity it had to Suits hampered the spinoff's chance at success. Frankly, it was a Catch-22 that Suits LA couldn't recover from. How The Franchise Could Have Capitalized On Suits' Resurgence On its own, Suits LA becoming a one-season wonder was disappointing, but NBC's fumble is all the more painful when you consider what the Suits franchise could have become. Jessica Pearson (Gina Torres) was a fan-favorite character, but not even her starpower could save 2019's Pearson, as it was too drastic of a departure from the original series. Six years later, Suits LA fell victim to the same trap, proving Pearson's failure wasn't a fluke; it was the start of a pattern. Longtime viewers want new content, but that doesn't mean an entire spinoff was the way to go. If NBC wanted to make the most out of Suits' rising popularity, it could have focused on the established strengths of the original series: its indomitable cast of characters. Be it a limited series, a movie, or a one-off reunion special à la Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, Suits could have ridden the wave of its Netflix hype for years to come if it had only stuck to its guns. Release Date 2011 - 2019-00-00 Network USA Network Showrunner Aaron Korsh Cast Gabriel Macht Harvey Specter Directors Anton Cropper, Michael Smith, Christopher Misiano, Kevin Bray, Roger Kumble, Silver Tree, Cherie Nowlan, John Scott, Gabriel Macht, Patrick J. Adams, Emile B. Levisetti, Félix Enríquez Alcalá, Valerie Weiss, James Whitmore Jr., Jennifer Getzinger, Kate Dennis, Terry McDonough, Maurice Marable, Adam Davidson, David Platt, Dennie Gordon, Gregor Jordan, Julian Holmes, Kate Woods Writers Aaron Korsh, Genevieve Sparling, Daniel Arkin, Ethan Drogin, Sharyn Rothstein, Jon Cowan, Erica Lipez, Justin Peacock, Nora Zuckerman, Lilla Zuckerman, Chris Downey, Garrett Schabb, Kristin Rusk Robinson, Sean Jablonski, Ian Deitchman, Paul Redford, Michael L. Kramer Creator(s) Aaron Korsh