TV Networks Bank on a Miniseries Revival

Summer is not just for reruns anymore. With more people viewing programs on demand via Netflix or tuning in to cable shows, which debut year-round, network executives are looking to fill their schedules with original programming and big-name stars. To do that, they’re reviving a format from the 1970s—the miniseries—and joining forces with online providers to reach more viewers.

Short-run series often attract film stars who draw audiences and advertising, just as decades ago The Winds of War did with Robert Mitchum and The Thornbirds did with the “king of the miniseries,” Richard Chamberlain. In July, CBS will air Extant, a 13-week-long sci-fi miniseries starring Halle Berry and produced by Steven Spielberg. It’s one of several short “event series,” as they’re known, planned for the coming year.