CBS is hoping to capitalize off the strong sendoff it gave last year to its anchoring drama of seven seasons The Good Wife by reviving it in the form of a spin-off. The Good Fight stars Christine Baranski, among other alums of The Good Wife, as Diane Lockhart, Alicia Florrick's former sometimes-mentor-sometimes-nemesis. In this series, she's the star, and we follow her through a tumultuous retirement process that basically ends with her penniless and hunting for another job. But you won't be able to watch the show on TV. So why isn't The Good Fight airing on CBS? After the series premiere, which will debut in primetime as a special sneak peek, the show is moving exclusively to CBS' streaming platform CBS All Access.
After enjoying a significant boost in membership subscriptions following its decision to make a Big Brother spin-off and NFL on CBS content available on its streaming platform, CBS decided to make its first foray into exclusive scripted content for CBS All Access. The platform is available online and via an app, however, it's the only network TV platform that hides its services behind a paywall. So if you want to watch The Good Fight, you'll have to cough up the $5.99 a month for streaming with commercials or $9.99 a month for commercial-free viewing.
CBS also plans to release its new J.J. Abrams-helmed Star Trek reboot Star Trek: Discovery exclusively on CBS All Access. It's a steep price to pay for a platform with fledgeling original content, but in fairness, you do get access to a library of other CBS shows, too. Said Marc DeBevoise, president and chief operating officer of CBS Interactive of the new initiative, in a statement to E!:
CBS All Access has built tremendous momentum in the past year — passing one million subscribers, launching our first original with Big Brother: Over the Top and, most recently, bringing live NFL on CBS programming to the service. We're continuing this momentum with the upcoming launch of The Good Fight which promises to not only deliver more ambitious premium programming for our subscribers but an opportunity for world-class creators like Robert and Michelle King to push the envelope in new ways.
It looks like CBS has high hopes for the project's success, and, to its credit, it did pick two cult series with huge fanbases to kick off the move for scripted content exclusively on its for-pay streaming service. Whether or not fans are actually willing to pay up for yet another streaming membership will be discovered in the weeks to come.
