‘Welcome to the Family,’ ‘Ironside’ dropped; ‘Community’ to return

“Ironside” is being rolled away and “Welcome to the Family” is no longer welcome on NBC.

The peacock network said it was dropping the two shows as part of a restructuring of its schedule. Also, the critical darling “Community” is coming back in January.

“Ironside,” starring Blair Underwood, was a high-profile remake of the classic police drama about a detective who uses a wheelchair. “Welcome to the Family” was a sitcom about a culture clash between two families whose children are in love.

ON LOCATION: Where the cameras roll

Neither registered with viewers though. Thursday’s “Welcome to the Family” drew 2.45 million viewers and a rating of 0.9 in the key 18-49 demographic, up a bit week-to-week according to Nielsen. “Ironside” averaged just 4.8 million viewers and a 1.0 rating on Wednesday.

NBC will run a variety of programming in “Ironside’s” 10 p.m. time slot through December, including new episodes of “Dateline,” holiday-themed “Saturday Night Live” episodes and musical holiday specials with Kelly Clarkson and Michael Bublé.

In January, NBC will debut “Chicago P.D.,” a spinoff of “Chicago Fire.”

Following “Welcome to the Family’s” demise, the 8-9 p.m. Thursday time slot will be filled by back-to-back episodes of “Parks and Recreation” and assorted specials.

PHOTOS: Hollywood Backlot moments

NBC’s fall Thursday lineup, which also includes the freshman comedies “Sean Saves the World” and “The Michael J. Fox Show,” along with “Parenthood,” has been struggling this year. According to early Nielsen numbers, network drew an average of 3.4 million viewers and a rating of 1.2 in the key 18-49 demographic this Thursday.

NBC said “Community” will return for a fifth season in January at 8 p.m. on Thursdays, starting with back-to-back episodes on Jan. 2. For the rest of the new season, “Community” will air at 8 p.m. and “Parks and Recreation” will move to 8:30 p.m.

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