Beginning next month, GSN will be home to millionaires seven nights per week.
The network renewed its deal with Buena Vista Television for Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, ordering an additional 112 episodes of the Regis Philbin-hosted series, as well as one-dozen Super Millionaire shows in which contestants vied for a top prize of $10 million.
Super Millionaire, which ABC aired during sweeps periods, will become part of GSN’s Sunday-night lineup at 8 p.m. (EST/PST) starting May 1. The show joins its predecessor, which airs Monday-Saturday in the same time period.
GSN has been airing Who Wants to Be a Millionaire since October 2003, and the show has proven to be a solid performer for the service in terms of overall viewers and adults 25-54. During the season to date, Millionaire has averaged a 0.7 Nielsen Media Research household mark, according to GSN officials.
"When the story of television in this decade is written, the phenomena of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and Regis Philbin will be credited as the catalyst for drastic change. That's why night after night, a tremendous amount of viewers tune in to watch Who Wants to Be a Millionaire on GSN,” senior vice president of programming Ian Valentine said in a prepared statement.
“We want to reward this loyal following with even more episodes of the spectacularly successful program,” he added. “Also, adding Super Millionaire is just another way for us to reward our loyal viewers.”
