‘Judge Judy’ Sheindlin Reveals Details About Her New Amazon Series

After more than 25 years, Judge Judy is set to come to an end, but that doesn’t mean court is adjourned for Judy Sheindlin. Although the famed TV judge is preparing to step away from her namesake courtroom TV show, which officially wrapped filming in April, Sheindlin is prepping for her next career endeavor, Judy Justice. The upcoming series is set to debut on Amazon’s ad-supported IMDb TV, and Sheindlin recently dished some new details on the show.

Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter as Judge Judy begins to wind to a close, the show’s final episodes set to air later this year, Sheindlin teased that fans shouldn’t expect that much of a change when they tune into Judy Justice. Although Sheindlin confirmed “we’ll be changing some of the things around me,” she promised she is “not becoming a ballet dancer.” The show, she said, will have some familiar aspects, including those working behind the camera, as she “had wonderful people producing and directing the Judge Judy program, and a couple of them will be following me to Amazon.” The 78-year-old said “that will keep my life on a steady keel.”

Currently, few details have been revealed about the upcoming series, and it was only confirmed in October 2020 that Sheindlin signed a deal to bring Judy Justice to Amazon Studios, where it will air on the Amazon-owned IMDb TV platform. According to Sheindlin, the show’s team has “to deliver a certain number of episodes by December.” After that, “Amazon will make the determination how and when they want to release this show,” meaning fans will likely have to wait a while longer before tuning in. Sheindlin added, “I don’t know. Give me a robe and a case, and I’ll do my job.”

The new TV endeavor comes after it was announced in March 2020 that Judge Judy would be after 25 seasons. The series initially launched in 1996 and has been one of the most-watched syndicated programs ever since. It is still the most-watched court show on television, averaging 9 million viewers a day, and the show won Outstanding Legal/Courtroom Drama at the Daytime Emmys in 2013, 2016 and 2017. In 2019, Sheindlin received the Daytime Emmys’ Lifetime Achievement Award. Although Sheindlin has been reporting to the courtroom for the series for more than two decades, she wasn’t ready to retire just yet, and at 78, she told THR she is “not tired. I don’t play golf or tennis. I have no desire to learn how to play mahjong, chess or checkers. I know what I like to do. Why, at my stage in life, would I try to find something else when I already know what I like?”