After ending its seven season run with a finale some critics likened to The Sopranos, some called “not great,” and others spurned as a prestige program garbage dump, The Good Wife might be getting its second wind in the form of a spinoff—starring none other than Mary Sunshine Christine Baranksi.
As Variety reported, the proposed spinoff—which is purportedly still in negotiations for a straight series order—would focus on Baranski’s Good Wife character/litigation BAMF Diane Lockhart, who served as a mentor and boss for Alicia Florrick (Julianna Margulies), the show’s titular heroine.
The untitled project, which Good Wife showrunner duo Michelle and Robert King will head as executive producers, will also feature British actress Cush Jumbo, who has the most undoubtedly perfect name any parent ever lovingly bequeathed to their child.
Unlike its network-only predecessor, the show is set to air on CBS All Access, the network’s SVOD service, along with a Bryan Fuller-fronted Star Trek reboot announced last February. Variety also noted that CBS hopes to “extend the Good Wife aura that has been a source of prestige for the Eye” as well as simultaneously shifting its focus to its subscriber platform, ultimately staying relevant within a media (i.e., Netflix-driven) landscape.
Oh, and none us of can discount that little thing known as Christine Baranski’s ultimate star appeal, which I would argue makes her the Barbra Streisand of legal procedurals:
“A Good Wife spinoff with Baranski would be another marquee property to help drive subscriptions to the service, which sells for $6 a month. Sending the spinoff to All Access rather than the mothership network is a sign of CBS’ determination to invest in All Access as a distinct programming platform. CBS Corp. chairman-CEO Leslie Moonves has said the goal is to have three to four original series airing on CBS All Access every year.”
A Diane-centric spinoff could also give fans the all-female law firm Diane had been going on about during the show’s last few episodes. If the repeated mention of this law firm also doubled as an Easter egg for the spinoff during the show’s last season, it would presumably satiate some components of The Good Wife that left more to be desired. The show could presumably give audiences a lot more of Jumbo’s Lucca Quinn, who made a sizable impression with fans during her season seven stint, as well as give viewers more insight into the character of Diane Lockhart herself, whose personal life played a much smaller part in The Good Wife’s plot and sub-plot arcs in comparison to other characters.
Whether or not the deal for the project goes through, I think we’re all pretty sure what it will not be named:
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