Will 'Ghosts' Still Air on CBS Amid Major Streaming Deal on Paramount+?

By Daniel S. Levine

With Season 2 coming to broadcast network CBS this fall, Paramount+ will be the exclusive streaming home for the hit comedy Ghosts, the streamer announced on May 10. Episodes of the series were released to Paramount+ as the first season aired concurrently on CBS, but the deal ensures the streamer will be the only place to find Ghosts before Season 2 begins and premieres this fall on CBS. It also means Paramount will avoid the discomfiting situation with Yellowstone, which is only available to stream on rival NBC's Peacock even though it airs on Paramount Network.

Paramount announced the deal alongside Lionsgate, the studio that handles distribution and co-produces Ghosts with BBC Studios and CBS Studios. Under the terms of the deal, Paramount+ will be the exclusive year-round subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) home of the comedy, beginning in the fall. Ghosts is the most-watched comedy on Paramount+ this year and the most-watched new broadcast half-hour comedy in the past four years.

Ghosts is inspired by the U.K. comedy of the same name created by Mathew Baynton, Simon Farnaby, Martha Howe-Douglas, Jim Howick, Laurence Rickard, and Ben Willbond. Joe Port and Joe Wiseman developed the U.S. version, which follows the same structure as the original. Rose McIver and Utkarsh Ambudkar star as Samantha and Jay, a married couple who move into a haunted mansion. Samantha can see the ghosts after surviving a near-death experience, but Jay cannot. Asher Grodman, Richie Moriarty, Sheila Carrasco, Danielle Pinnock, Brandon Scott Jones, Rebecca Wisocky, Roman Zaragoza, and Devan Chandler Long star as the ghosts, who come from various time periods and are stuck living in the mansion.

"Since the series premiere, Ghosts has found passionate viewers – both on CBS and Paramount+," David Stapf, president of CBS Studios, said in a statement. "Ratings and online conversation about the show have grown virtually every week, and the series is the #1 new comedy by a huge margin. The best part is that viewers are still finding this unique and brilliant series, and this new SVOD agreement will help further that discovery process in a big way."

"Ghosts is one of the biggest comedy hits in years and one of the most talked-about shows. It is the perfect addition to the fantastic pipeline of content driving peak streaming at Paramount+," Tanya Giles, chief programming officer at Paramount+, added. "With fresh storylines, an incredible cast, and a brilliant creative team, Ghosts is that rare television series that taps into the popular zeitgeist to become a cultural phenomenon," Jim Packer, president of the Lionsgate Worldwide Television Distribution Group, said.

Paramount likely made the deal with bad memories of Yellowstone haunting them like the ghosts in Ghosts. Back in January 2020, before Yellowstone cemented its status as the most-watched cable drama and then-CBS All Access was well-established, ViacomCBS made an exclusive streaming deal with Peacock. Since then, Paramount executives haven't been shy about voicing their regrets about the deal, which also left viewers confused. Paramount+ is already home to one Yellowstone spinoff, 1883, but not the mothership series itself. 

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