Joey (TV series)
Joey is an American sitcom created by Scott Silveri and Shana Goldberg-Meehan. It is a spin-off/sequel to "Friends", with Matt LeBlanc reprising his role as Joey Tribbiani. It premiered on NBC on September 9, 2004. Midway through the second season, the show was placed on a hiatus but returned on March 7, 2006. Only one episode aired before the show was pulled when it was overshadowed in ratings by "American Idol." NBC canceled the series due to low ratings on August 23, 2006. Overview. The series centers on Joey Tribbiani, who has struck out  on his own and moved to Hollywood, hoping to truly make it as an actor. After reuniting with his high-strung sister, Gina, a hairdresser, Joey moves in with his genius twenty-year-old nephew Michael, who is a rocket scientist. He begins a tentative romance with his superintendent, Alexis Garrett, and becomes close friends with fellow aspiring actor Zach Miller. Cast and characters. Several cast members had previously appeared as different characters in "Friends": Coolidge appeared as Amanda, an old friend of Monica and Phoebe, in a tenth-season episode. Adam Goldberg, who played Jimmy, appeared in the second  season of"Friends" in the recurring role of Eddie, who moves in with Chandler after Joey moves out. Carlos Gómez, who played Sam the director, appeared in one episode of "Friends" as the restaurant worker Julio in "The One with All the Jealousy". Patrick Kerr, who played the producer of the Daytime Soap Awards, appeared in one episode of "Friends" as a restaurant manager who auditions Monica for a job as a chef. Brent Spiner, who played himself, appeared in one episode of "Friends" as James Campbell, who interviews Rachel for a job. Additionally, Robert Costanzo reprised his role as Joey 's father, Joey Tribbiani Sr., who originated in the first season of "Friends", in "Joey and the Dad", making Costanzo the only actor besides LeBlanc to play the same character in both series, since Gina and Mary Theresa both appeared in a third-season episode of "Friends", but were not played by Drea de Matteo and Christina Ricci, respectively. Simon Helberg appeared in four episodes as Seth Tobin, a nerdy engineer and friend/rival of Michael who shared many similarities with one of Helberg's later characters, Howard Wolowitz, in "The Big Bang Theory". David Schwimmer, who previously portrayed Ross  Geller and directed several episodes of "Friends", returned to direct two episodes of "Joey". Background and development. After the series finale of "Friends" in 2004, LeBlanc signed on for the spin-off series, "Joey", following Joey's move to Los Angeles to pursue his acting career. "Friends" producers Marta Kauffman and David Crane were not interested in the spin-off, although Kevin S. Bright agreed to be executive producer, along with "Joey" creators Scott Silveri and Shana Goldberg-Meehan, the latter of whom left the show after the first season and was replaced by Jon Pollack. The pilot episode was  released in screener for test audiences and members of the entertainment industry to preview the show and drum up business. The screener was subsequently leaked on the internet and thus has received a much wider critical review process than initially conceived. There were few differences between the unbroadcast pilot and the version that was broadcast. Ashley Scott played the role of Allison in the unbroadcast pilot but was replaced by Andrea Anders, and the character name changed to Alex. The series did well in the Nielsen ratings in its first season (2004–2005) and was subsequently renewed for a second season  (2005–2006). In the second season, Miguel A. Núñez Jr. was added to the show as a series regular and Jennifer Coolidge had a more prominent role. The show was pulled from its Thursday-night timeslot in December 2005 and NBC returned it in a new timeslot (Tuesdays at 8pm) on March 7, 2006. Due in part to being in competition with "American Idol", "Joey" was the lowest-rated prime time program of the week for NBC. The network pulled the series after the first Tuesday broadcast, and its cancellation was announced on May 15, 2006. The remaining episodes have  never been broadcast by NBC but have been shown on various other networks around the world. Episode 5 and Episode 13 of season one were directed by David Schwimmer, who played Ross Geller in "Friends." NBC heavily promoted "Joey" and gave it "Friends"<nowiki>'</nowiki> Thursday 8:00 pm timeslot. The pilot was watched by 18.6 million American viewers, but ratings continually decreased throughout the series' two seasons, averaging 10.20 million viewers in the first season and 7.10 million in the second. The final broadcast episode, on March 7, 2006, was watched by 4.1 million viewers; NBC canceled the series on May  15, 2006, after two seasons. Bright blamed the collaboration between NBC executives, the studio, and other producers for quickly ruining the series: International airings. In Brazil, the show premiered on November 2, 2004, and it was first aired on Warner Channel. The entire series was broadcast. Two years later, it also premiered on terrestrial television channel SBT, under the name "Vida de Artista" ("Artist's Life"). The show was also screened in New Zealand on TV2 and in Australia on the Nine Network. In the United Kingdom, it aired on Channel 5. Reception and cancellation. "Joey" premiered on NBC on  September 9, 2004, as part of the network's Thursday-night comedy lineup. Although the series was not well received by critics, the pilot episode attracted 18.6 million viewers. As the first season progressed, ratings fell but remained average (10.1 million viewers). NBC renewed the series for a second season and moved it to Tuesday nights, opposite Fox's highly rated "American Idol". Ratings for the second season fell to an all-time low (4.1 million viewers), and NBC put the show on hiatus in March 2006. The network officially canceled the show in May 2006, citing low ratings. Awards  and nominations. "Joey" won the People's Choice Award for Favorite New Television Comedy, and Matt LeBlanc won Favorite Male Television Star. LeBlanc was also nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy. Aftermath. After the series' cancellation in 2006, Matt LeBlanc took a four-year break from acting, before returning in the BBC Two/Showtime sitcom "Episodes". The series was a success for the actor, earning him a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy in 2012. On the show, he plays a fictionalized version of himself. "Joey" is  brought up several times in conversation by characters on the show, including LeBlanc, most notably when he questions the accuracy of the audience research commissioned by TV networks with the line "Research said "Joey" was going to be a hit".