As coronavirus continues to be a concern, many TV shows are halting production. NCIS, Grey’s Anatomy and many more shows are shut down for now.

With coronavirus showing no signs of slowing down right now, TV production companies are taking steps to halt the spread of disease. As many have issued work from home mandates, those in the middle of filming are making the decision to halt production. Grey’s Anatomy and NCIS are just two shows halted for production.

Deadline reported the news about Grey’s Anatomy first. NCIS and its spin-offs, The Good Fight, the One Chicago shows, and Carnival Row are among those that have quickly followed. It comes after various late-night talk shows decided to film without the live audience and then quickly opted to halt production completely until the pandemic has lessened.

Update Mar. 14: The majority of TV shows have now shutdown production, including Supernatural, SEAL Team, all Netflix shows, and all Apple TV+ shows.

Some productions shutting down for the season

NCIS and its spin-offs are among the shows that are shutting down for the season. They’ll film the current episodes they’re working on, which will be in the high teens or low 20s, and will then stop production. It costs too much to restart afterward and could cause scheduling problems for the networks. Many of the shows halting production on the current season completely are those that have already been renewed or have a strong chance of being renewed for at least one more season. Those worried about unanswered questions will get their answers later.

Some shows will wrap up their seasons. Hawaii Five-0 has already filmed its series finale, so there’s no need to worry about that one. The Neighborhood has just one episode of the season left. That’s due to film next week and production will remain on to finish it up. All other comedies have finished filming for their seasons. It’s mostly the dramas considering they take eight to nine days per episode instead of the three to four that comedies take.

Grey’s Anatomy may return to filming

Meanwhile, Grey’s Anatomy has opted to shut down for two weeks. There is a potential plan to return to filming afterward. The show is wrapping up filming on Episode 21 of its 25-episode season. There are plans to see it through to the end.

Of course, with a Season 17 already in the bag, it is possible that the show will not return. This could depend on whether ABC will have the time in the schedule to air the final episodes. It will also depend on how long the current pandemic continues.

This is something the networks and the production studios are playing by ear. It’s a safe decision to protect employees. It comes after many unscripted shows like The Amazing Race and Survivor have halted or postponed production. The Bachelor Summer Games may be outright canceled and The Bachelorette is only filming in North America to counter coronavirus.

It’s going to be sad to see the shorter seasons, but it certainly makes sense. At Channel Watchers, we just hope everyone remains safe.