Unlike other TV networks, CBS doesn’t wait until May to make major renewal decisions. That’s been proven as December 2025 saw renewals for FBI, Sheriff Country, and Boston Blue. That’s no shock at all as the network enjoys its procedurals.
Thrusday, Jan. 22 was a big day for CBS fans, as the network renewed a whopping 10 shows. Those include all three NCIS series, Elsbeth, Matlock, Tracker, and others. However, notably absent from those renewals is Watson and that doesn’t bode well for the series.
Watson has always been a tough show to figure out. The gist is that John Watson (Morris Chestnut) inherits a fortune from his late friend Sherlock Holmes. Watson sets up a clinic specializing in unusual medical cases, using the crime-solving skills Holmes taught him to find the truth alongside a batch of maverick doctors.
The show wasn’t a huge ratings juggernaut, but still did well enough to earn a second season renewal. Originally set to return in the winter of 2026, it ended up being pushed ahead to the fall of 2025. Yet the show seems to have issues that could indicate a third season won’t be in the cards.
Why Watson is in trouble
The first problem with Watson is the ratings. Per TV Series Finale, season 2 is averaging 2.5 million viewers, half of what it had in season 1. A reason may be the show being moved from its previous slot of Sunday nights to Mondays following FBI. That doesn’t seem to have helped the audience grow, which is a reason why the show is moving back to Sundays when it returns on March 1, 2026. As it stands, the series is currently the lowest-rated series on CBS.
The move to Sundays may help with the show following Tracker and the new Marshals series. However, it may be too late as season 2 has seen a downturn in the storytelling. There’s too much melodrama on Watson’s team, from Ingrid wrestling with her dark side to Sasha meeting her birth mother, taking away from the medical mysteries.
Then there’s the issue of Sherlock (Robert Caryle) returning to help Watson out. However, the show has made it ambiguous whether Sherlock is actually there or a hallucination in Watson’s mind as he wrestles with relationship issues.
In short, the series has lost some of the fun it had in that first season. To complicate matters further, CBS is running out of space with so many renewals and at least two shows, Cupertino and Einstein, have 2026-27 series orders. In other words, it may come down to CBS not having any room to air the series.
Being banished to late Sundays (which is now replacing Fridays as the “death slot” night) may be the nail in the coffin. Maybe if the series performs surprisingly well following the two lead-in shows, it may be enough to pull off a renewal. However, the lack of a renewal now doesn't show CBS having a lot of faith in Watson continuing on.
Watson season 2 returns on Sunday, March 1 at 10/9c on CBS.