(Photo: Fernando Marrero/CBS)
CBS seems done with fun music and gameplay on Monday nights. The network has pulled the new Lotería Loca TV series from the schedule after five weeks. While it hasn’t been officially cancelled, it’s difficult to imagine that it will be renewed for a second season with such poor ratings.
A game show, the Lotería Loca TV series was inspired by a traditional Latin bingo game and is hosted by Jaime Camil. Each high-energy episode features two players going head-to-head and taking turns picking cards to get three in a row, which achieves “Lotería.” Contestants are led through the game of chance as female percussionist and band leader Sheila E. provides them with vibrant music to play by. Each time a card appears on their unique bingo-style card, they bank big money. Landing on one of the “Loca Cards” creates a twist in the game and allows players to bank even more cash by competing in wild and interactive challenges. The player who gets the most “Loterías” on their board the fastest moves on to the dramatic final round for a chance to win the ultimate million-dollar prize.
Airing on Monday nights, the first season of Lotería Loca averaged a 0.18 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 1.42 million viewers in the live+same day ratings (including DVR playback through 3:00 AM). It’s the CBS network’s lowest-rated series and is outranked by 48 Hours which airs late on Saturday nights.
To be fair, Lotería Loca has faced some serious competition, with Monday Night Football on ABC, Major League Baseball on FOX, and The Voice on NBC.
Reruns of NCIS will fill the timeslot for the foreseeable future as CBS prepares to launch the network’s first original scripted show of the season, NCIS: Sydney.
Five episodes of Lotería Loca remain in the season, and given CBS’ current need for original content, the network will likely air the leftover installments at some point. A holiday episode is still expected to run in December.
What do you think? Have you checked out the Lotería Loca TV series? Are you disappointed the CBS show has likely been cancelled and won’t be back for a second season? Will you watch the leftover episodes?