10 TV Shows Too Big To Fail (That Did It Anyway)

3. Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip

Why It Was 'Too Big'

After the conclusion of The West Wing - a series that attracted 17 million viewers at its peak, and won 26 Emmys - fans waited with bated breath to see just what genius screenwriter Aaron Sorkin would do next.

The answer was Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip, a behind-the-scenes look at an SNL-style live sketch show, complete with a show-within-a-show too. It was an exciting, new premise for the time, and was led by The West Wing star Bradley Whitford alongside Matthew Perry, in his first major role post-Friends. The show was the subject of a major bidding war between NBC and CBS, with the former paying a near-record fee to acquire it, and it was the most anticipated series of the coming TV season.

Why It Failed Anyway

Although audiences and critics were quickly taken with Studio 60, things quickly turned sour on the ratings front. By episode 5 there'd been an almost 50% drop-off from the premiere episode, which meant it was always going to have a tough task turning things around. There was, however, another reason for its failure too, in the form of Tina Fey's 30 Rock.

It can't go unnoticed that the shows, while different in execution, have basically the exact same premise. 30 Rock was by far the smaller of the two, given Studio 60 came from the biggest writer in TV at the time, but it was also smarter, funnier, and, most importantly, a lot cheaper. Only one of them could survive, and Studio 60 was cancelled after one season, while 30 Rock would run for seven in total.