ABC Not Moving Forward With ‘Body Of Proof’ Resurrection… At Least For Now

After giving a Body Of Proof midseason order serious consideration for the past several weeks, I hear ABC is throwing in the towel on the idea after running out of time. Even if the network and producing studio ABC Studios had figured out a way to make it happen and had actors and writers locked in to start work tomorrow, BOP wouldn’t have been ready to join the schedule until the last week of March. And neither ABC nor ABC Studios are anywhere near a workable plan for a BOP 2.0. “Sorry to disappoint some, but #bodyofproof will not be resurrected,” star Dana Delany tweeted today. “May she rest in peace. Time for new adventure.”

Technically, it is possible for ABC and ABC Studios to consider an order for summer or next season but the more time lapses, the harder bringing back key players would be. As Delany indicated, she may take on a new show, which would make her unavailable to BOP and thus seal its fate as her character is the heart of the series. Executive producer Matthew Gross has a high-profile new ABC drama project from Patricia Cornwell. Body Of Proof‘s May cancellation after three seasons was a head-scratcher. ABC walked away from an average audience of 11 million viewers, the third-largest for an ABC drama series last season, and 2.0/6 in the adults 18-49 demo. That is higher than three of ABC’s four new drama series – Lucky 7, Betrayal and Once Upon A Time In Wonderland. Cancelling Body Of Proof also was a financial hit to sibling ABC Studios, which had incurred three seasons worth of deficits and was making a lot of money off the show internationally. Additionally, Body Of Proof had won the California tax credit lottery, helping keep its production costs manageable. With the cancellation, those incentives went away, contributing to ABC and ABC Studios’ difficulties finding a feasible way to restart the show, which eyed a return to its original location of Rhode Island.