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Wednesday, January 15, 2003

HOLLYWOOD -- Going, going, gone? That's the question facing network programmers regarding several popular but aging series.

The WB's "Dawson's Creek," UPN's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and even its spinoff, The WB's "Angel," may be nearing the end of their runs.

Ray Romano, star of CBS's "Everybody Loves Raymond," has expressed ambivalence about his series returning, although CBS president Leslie Moonves dismissed any notion that viewers will no longer have the chance to love "Raymond."

"He's negotiating in the press," Moonves said candidly. "We think there's going to be more 'Everybody Loves Raymond.'"

But for the other series, there's less confidence they'll continue.

Jordan Levin, entertainment president at The WB, said he expects "Dawson's" to row into the sunset at the end of the season.

"You never know until the final second, but we're proceeding as though they made a choice that they're looking to complete the show with a level of integrity that they want to maintain," Levin said. "The 'Friends' cast and the 'Dawson's Creek' cast are in different places, both financially in terms of what they can get out of continuing the series and at the same time where their careers are at. ... And they now have tremendous opportunities in their lives to do whatever they want, be it film work, theater, continue television or going to school, which some of them want to do."

Star James Van Der Beek has not been shy in recent interviews about expressing a desire to move on. Just in case minds change, Levin said, the two-hour May finale "honors the beginning of the franchise and gives us flexibility at the same time to continue."

The future of "Buffy" largely depends on the will of series star Sarah Michelle Gellar, whose contract expires at the end of the season. With a burgeoning film career, she's not expected to return, but star Nicholas Brendon said he'd like to get one more year out of the series.

"Our first season, we were a midseason replacement," said Brendon, who is under contract for two more years. "I would like to do one more year. I've not been quiet about that."

Moonves, who oversees UPN as president of sister network CBS, said there are four distinct options: Gellar returns for another season, she returns in a few episodes as a special guest star, another "Buffy" spin-off is launched or the series simply comes to an end. He indicated it's most likely that the show, in its current form, will be over after May.

Chris Buchanan, president of creator Joss Whedon's Mutant Enemy Productions, echoed that sentiment.

"I think in Joss' mind, this season is the last season of 'Buffy' from a writer's standpoint," Buchanan said. "If this is indeed the last season of 'Buffy,' we will find a great deal of closure because the whole season has been set up to accommodate that."

The return of vampire slayer Faith (Eliza Dushku) for the last five episodes of the season has fueled rumors of a spin-off.

"Joss has certainly had conversations with her that I'm not privy to, so I couldn't say what they talked about," Buchanan said. "It's something we've talked about internally, how cool it would be to have a Faith show 'cause we love Eliza, but we have no idea if she's interested, no idea if UPN is interested."

Should "Buffy" come to an end, The WB's Levin said he's already told Whedon that if it's essential to the story and out of respect for the audience, he would allow the character of Angel to appear on "Buffy" even though it now airs on a rival network.

"I think it'd be very unfair to not let that show close with the dignity and full resources that it deserves," Levin said, "and it's certainly a show that I think will be perceived long-term as a show that was a WB show."

Even "Buffy" spin-off "Angel" could be in danger of cancellation. The series has never proved as popular as "Buffy," and although a move to Sunday night improved its standing, the series moves again, this time airing at 9 p.m. Wednesdays beginning tonight.

"With [Fox's] 'Fastlane' vacating the time slot, 'Angel' becomes the only real male drama in the time slot," Levin said. "It's a show that's proven it can move, and it has a very loyal audience. We're counting on it doing some heavy lifting on that night."

It's not just ratings that could endanger the future of "Angel." The WB's deal with Fox studios, which produces the series, is up at the end of the season. Negotiations between the two entities for the renewal of "Buffy" broke down two years ago, which led Fox to sell the series to UPN.

Levin said he's optimistic enough to encourage a season-ending cliffhanger, "because I think there's certainly a realistic chance it could come back."

Should The WB cancel "Angel," there's no guarantee UPN would scoop it up as the network did with "Buffy." Would UPN be interested?

"We don't comment on other people's shows, but we do want 'West Wing' on UPN," Moonves said, referring to the NBC drama that's also up for renegotiation but is widely expected to remain on NBC.