Harold Perrineau is waiting for a simple yes or no.
He’s waiting, just like his co-stars on ABC’s quirky new cop drama “The Unusuals” (including Amber Tamblyn, Adam Goldberg and Terry Kinney) and the rest of the cast and crew. “It’s nail-biting time,” says Perrineau. “I’m trying to be cool, but I’m knotted up.” Welcome to TV’s waiting game, an annual event playing out at dozens of network TV series that are neither slam-dunk hits nor terminal flops but instead (in industry lingo) “on the bubble,” their fate undetermined as each network formulates a fall prime-time schedule. NBC will unveil its roster Monday. Will struggling series such as “Chuck,” “Medium” or “My Name Is Earl” make the cut, competing for precious NBC real estate against other contenders such as the just-launched Amy Poehler comedy “Parks and Recreation” and gritty police drama “Southland,” plus any of several pilots vying for a series pickup, not to mention Jay Leno’s forthcoming weeknight hour (which will seize nearly one-quarter of the schedule) Wait and see what NBC’s scheduling calculus serves up! At ABC, CBS, Fox and the CW, the waiting game will drag on a bit longer: Upfront week for those networks kicks off May 18. The future remains murky for ABC newcomers “Castle,” “Cupid” and “The Unusuals,” where Perrineau plays an overcautious NYPD detective who refuses to doff his bulletproof vest, even at the station.
While Perrineau waits to learn if he and his family will head back to New York for another season of “The Unusuals,” Tom Hertz is in his own holding pattern.