It can be really frustrating to have to wait for a TV show to be available to watch. Many people who are not in the television industry complain about how long it takes for TV shows to release the latest season or the brand-new show they have been advertising for months. There are reasons that TV shows take so long to be aired.
The process of writing, producing, and then releasing a TV show can take anywhere from a few months to a year. Production times have a lot to do with the schedules of actors, the work that needs to be done for stunts and post-production work, and the release schedule of the contract that the network created before the show was shot. You could have to be quite patient when you are between seasons of your favorite shows due to these factors.
Why Do TV Shows Take So Long to Air?
The first consideration that can impact the release dates of TV shows is the production process with regard to writing and hiring. It can take as long as two or three months just to get the actors for the roles in the show to be contracted and ready to shoot. Writing can take as long as a year if the script is complex and the show has been on the air for a while.
Usually, shooting times can be about a month per season, but some shows need as much as three to five months due to shooting on location out of the country or complexities with stunts and other kinds of tough-to-create scenes.
Post-production can take a month or so as well. This means that there is not really a typical timeframe for the release of the next season of a TV show since the process is quite lengthy, even when the same actors and the same staff return to shoot a second season. The budget of the show and the other constraints for scheduling imposed by the network can also have a huge impact on release dates and times.
TV Shows Take An Average of About a Year to Produce, and Air
You should count on your favorite shows or that new show that you really want to see, taking about a year to land on TV or streaming services. This is the normal turnaround time to shoot, edit, produce, and finalize a quality TV show. Release dates work around major holidays and peak viewing times as well, so the show that you love might end up being completed and ready to go but not released until a favorable time of the year.
Being patient as a consumer of TV and streaming services is important. Thankfully, there are a lot of really great shows and TV series to watch while you wait for your favorite show to come back on the air.
This article was last updated on March 6, 2023 .
