A&E is finalising a deal to renew their hit drama series Longmire for a third season.
News that A&E was closing in on a renewal for Longmire initially leaked online when Executive Producer John Coveny tweeted: “Thanks to the 5 million plus weekly fans (live+7). Young and older skewing alike! The call just came: SEASON 3 for #Longmire is a GO!” Officially the network declined to comment, but sources insist that a deal is in the midst of being hammered out which would see the series return for a third season in 2014.
Based on the series of novels written by Craig Johnson and developed for television by John Coveny and Hunt Baldwin, Longmire follows Walt Longmire, the Sheriff of Absaroka County, Wyoming. Longmire is a widower who, following his wife’s death, lost interest in his job as Sheriff. But with the help of one of his deputies he re-commits to his job and decides to run for re-election, only to find that one of his own men is running against him. The drama series is produced by Warner Horizon Television and stars Robert Taylor (The Matrix), Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica), Lou Diamond Phillips (Stargate: Universe), Bailey Chase (Damages), Cassidy Freeman (Smallville) and newcomer Adam Bartley.
The expected renewal of Longmire, which is A&E’s most watched drama series, comes after the series posted strong ratings in its second season finale on Monday night; averaging 4.4 million total viewers and 1.127 million viewers in the A18-49 demo. The pick up of a third season also comes as A&E is making a more aggressive push into scripted, with the network having recently green-lit pilot Occult from X-Files alum James Wong and picked up a new series titled Those Who Kill for a 2014 premiere. Longmire is also poised to join Bates Motel, which has already been renewed for next season, while the fate of fellow summer series The Glades is less certain.
