Two CBS Shows Receive Multi-Year Extensions

CBS announced today that two of its Monday night sitcoms, "The Big Bang Theory" and "Two and a Half Men," will be around for a few more seasons.

"Two and a Half Men" is oft-maligned for its quality, but there is little doubt about its popularity. The show, now in its sixth season, is TV's highest-rated comedy with 15.1 million viewers. It also is the top-rated show among adults 18-49, with a 5.1 rating. Honestly, I find the numbers kind of amazing, as I don't know anyone who actually watches it (or at least anyone who will admit to it).

Conversely, "The Big Bang Theory" is a show few people seem to really love or really hate. However, the sophomore series is up 20 percent this year in viewership, topping the 10 million viewer mark. In its second season, the show has found firmer comedic footing by focusing more on the Sheldon (Jim Parsons) and Penny (Kaley Cuoco) characters, and less on Leonard (Johnny Galecki).

According to HitFix.com, the shows were paired together in the renewal process by Warner Bros. Television and Chuck Lorre Productions. A three-year renewal will carry "Two and a Half Men" through the 2011-12 season, and a two-year extension will take "The Big Bang Theory" to the 2010-11 season.

"The Big Bang Theory" airs at 8 p.m. ET on Mondays and "Two and a Half Men" airs at 9 p.m. that same night. Sandwiched in between is "How I Met Your Mother," which has yet to be renewed. Unlike previous seasons, however, "How I Met Your Mother" should have an easy time getting renewed for the following season. It's averaging more than 11 million viewers and the show's creators signed a lucrative syndication deal with Lifetime last September.

According to Variety, Lifetime outbid TBS, ABC Family, FX and Comedy Central for exclusive cable TV rights for "How I Met Your Mother" at a cost of $82.5 million (or about $750,000 an episode multiplied by 110 half hours). In fact, it was the second biggest license fee ever paid out by a cable network for a sitcom in the first cycle, bested only by the $800,000 an episode FX paid for "Two and a Half Men."