After just four episodes, The Real Love Boat has been pulled from CBS. The reality dating competition show will now air on Paramount+.
The Real Love Boat will sail to Paramount+ after CBS removed it from its primetime lineup after just four episodes. Hosted by real-life married couple Jerry O’Connell and Rebecca Romijn, The Real Love Boat is based on the classic comedy-drama series The Love Boat, which aired on ABC from 1977 to 1986. The reality dating competition show brings singles together as they travel the Mediterranean on a luxury cruise ship while looking for love. After a month at sea, one winning couple will receive a cash prize, along with a once-in-a-lifetime trip with Princess Cruises, which serves as the exclusive partner of The Real Love Boat.
According to TV Line, The Real Love Boat will no longer air on CBS, effective immediately, but will instead move to Paramount+ where it will stream on Wednesdays. The first four episodes of the show are already available to stream. Beginning Wednesday, Nov. 2, new episodes of The Amazing Race will air in The Real Love Boat’s 9 p.m. time slot after Survivor at 8 p.m. CBS will fill the 10 p.m. time slot with encore airings of the network’s dramas, beginning with a rerun of The Equalizer.
The Real Love Boat Sank In The Ratings
The Real Love Boat premiered on Oct. 5 to only 2.4 million total viewers and a 0.3 demo rating. These were some of the lowest numbers among the new fall shows. Even with Live+7 playback factored in, The Real Love Boat only added 20 percent to its total audience and hardly raised its demo number.
The Real Love Boat seemed to have a promising concept, especially since it was based on a beloved show that could have appealed to people’s feelings of nostalgia. It is difficult to say why some shows thrive and others fail, but ABC’s airing of Bachelor in Paradise in the fall for the first time could have something to do with it. Although the ratings for BIP have not been stellar either, fans already know the contestants. Also, the show airs on Mondays and Tuesdays, so it simply might be too much for viewers to then tune in to The Real Love Boat on Wednesdays as well and have to get to know new contestants.
NBC made a similar move earlier this year when the reality dating competition series The Courtship was pulled from its lineup and moved to the USA Network. Fans followed the show to the new network as DVRs simply recorded the show in its new time slot. However, this was not a move to a streaming service. Based on people’s negative reactions to ABC’s Dancing With The Stars being moved to the streaming network Disney+, fans might not watch The Real Love Boat on Paramount+. Television is currently at an interesting crossroads as shows move from network TV to streaming services. If fans truly love and care about The Real Love Boat, they will follow the show to Paramount+. Otherwise, The Real Love Boat is sunk.
The Real Love Boat streams Wednesdays on Paramount+.
Source: TV Line
