Judge Judy Sheindlin, the highest-paid TV jurist, is making her long-awaited return to television this fall. However, her comeback poses a significant challenge to her former employers at CBS. After 25 successful seasons, Sheindlin ended her syndicated courtroom series, “Judge Judy,” with CBS in 2021. She and her executive producer, Scott Koondel, who is a former CBS executive, then created and distributed a new courtroom show called “Judy Justice” on Amazon’s Freevee streaming service via Sox Entertainment.
Despite CBS’s attempt to keep Judy out of the marketplace, she has been cleared in 95% of the country and is ready to make her mark on linear television once again. This move has left CBS gobsmacked because they were banking on local markets buying up reruns of Sheindlin’s old show. Now, CBS is left with the task of selling repeats of “Judge Judy,” which has less value in the marketplace, while other stations have the option to air original episodes of “Judy Justice.”
CBS is working hard to secure the most coveted timeslots and top dollar for the reruns of “Judge Judy.” On the other hand, Sox Entertainment aims to elbow the old show aside and secure the best stations and time slots for “Judy Justice.” It’s an intense battle for dominance in the courtroom TV genre.
Interestingly, there were talks about “Judy Justice” potentially replacing CBS’s long-running daytime chat series, “The Talk.” However, these conversations did not materialize as CBS’s syndication division owns the rights to the original show’s library and believes their programming plate is already full. They were also not familiar with any discussions regarding the replacement of “The Talk” with “Judy Justice.”
While CBS, Sheindlin, and her executive producer declined to comment, it is clear that Judge Judy has a massive and loyal audience who will follow her from broadcast to streaming, and even to cable. Sheindlin’s popularity is unparalleled, and she has the ability to draw in a New Year’s Eve crowd if she were to appear on a billboard in Times Square, according to Koondel.
While New Yorkers won’t see Judy on a Times Square billboard, they can catch “Judy Justice” at 3 p.m. on Pix 11 and reruns of “Judge Judy” on CBS stations. One thing’s for sure, at least Judy fan Jay-Z will be happy!
In conclusion, Judge Judy’s triumphant return to television with “Judy Justice” has created a dilemma for her former bosses at CBS. The battle for viewership and advertising revenue is heating up, with CBS struggling to sell reruns of her old show while “Judy Justice” offers fresh and original content. It remains to be seen which courtroom TV show will emerge as the ultimate winner, but one thing is certain: Judge Judy’s loyal audience will continue to support her through every platform she appears on.
