Editing Cold Case (section)

==U.S. television ratings==
:'''Note:''' ''Each U.S. network television season starts in late September and ends in late May, which coincides with the completion of May [[sweeps]].''

{| class="wikitable"
|- style="background:#e0e0e0;"
! colspan="3"| Season
! | Timeslot
! | Season premiere
! | Season finale
! | Ranking
! | Rating
! | Viewers<br />(in millions)
|- style="background:#f9f9f9;"
| style="background:teal; height:10px;"|
| '''1st'''
| [[2003–04 United States network television schedule|2003–2004]]
| style="text-align:center;" rowspan="3"| <small>Sunday 8:00&nbsp;p.m.</small>
| September 28, 2003
| May 23, 2004
! style="text-align:center" | #17
! style="text-align:center" | 9.3<ref name=PrimeTimeDirectoryRatings>{{cite book |title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows (1946—Present): Ninth Edition |last=Brooks |first=Tim |author-link=timbrooks.net |author2=Earle Marsh |year=2007 |publisher=[[Ballantine Books]] |location=United States |isbn=978-0-345-49773-4 |pages=1697–1698 }}<!--|access-date=March 5, 2012--></ref>
! style="text-align:center" | 14.18
|- style="background:#f9f9f9;"
|  style="background:#004eff; height:10px;"|
| '''2nd'''
| [[2004–05 United States network television schedule|2004–2005]]
| October 3, 2004
| May 22, 2005
! style="text-align:center" | #14
! style="text-align:center" | 9.7<ref name=PrimeTimeDirectoryRatings />
! style="text-align:center" | 15.10
|- style="background:#f9f9f9;"
|  style="background:#f00000; height:10px;"|
| '''3rd'''
| [[2005–06 United States network television schedule|2005–2006]]
| September 25, 2005
| May 21, 2006
! style="text-align:center" | #17
! style="text-align:center" | 9.3<ref name=PrimeTimeDirectoryRatings />
! style="text-align:center" | 14.24
|- style="background:#f9f9f9;"
|  style="background:#FCC200; height:10px;"|
| '''4th'''
| [[2006–07 United States network television schedule|2006–2007]]
| style="text-align:center;" rowspan="3"| <small>Sunday 9:00&nbsp;p.m.</small>
| September 24, 2006
| May 6, 2007
! style="text-align:center" | #16
! style="text-align:center" | 8.9<ref name=PrimeTimeDirectoryRatings />
! style="text-align:center" | 13.98
|- style="background:#f9f9f9;"
| style="background:#000; height:10px;"|
| '''5th'''
| [[2007–08 United States network television schedule|2007–2008]]
| September 23, 2007
| May 4, 2008
! style="text-align:center" | #28
! style="text-align:center" | 7.1<ref name=TimBrooksRatings>{{cite web |author=Tim Brooks |date=6 September 2011|title=Top Rated TV Programs By Season (2007-2011) |url=http://www.timbrooks.net/ratings/ |work=Television and Record Industry History Resources |access-date=19 June 2012 }}</ref> 
! style="text-align:center" | 10.89
|- style="background:#f9f9f9;"
| style="background:silver; height:10px;"|
| '''6th'''
| [[2008–09 United States network television schedule|2008–2009]]
| September 28, 2008
| May 10, 2009
! style="text-align:center" | #20
! style="text-align:center" | 7.5<ref name=TimBrooksRatings />
! style="text-align:center" | 12.00
|- style="background:#f9f9f9;"
| style="background:darkBlue; height:10px;"|
| '''7th'''
| [[2009–10 United States network television schedule|2009–2010]]
| ! style="background:#F9F9F9;font-size:11px;font-weight:normal;text-align:left;line-height:110%" | <small>Sunday 10:00&nbsp;p.m. (September 27, 2009 – November 15, 2009, February 14, 2010 – May 2, 2010)</small><br /><small>Sunday 9:00&nbsp;p.m. (November 22, 2009 – January 17, 2010)</small><br />
| September 27, 2009
| May 2, 2010<ref name="CBS 24809">{{cite web |url=http://www.cbspressexpress.com/div.php/cbs_entertainment/release?id=24809 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130121023249/http://www.cbspressexpress.com/div.php/cbs_entertainment/release?id=24809 |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 21, 2013 |work=CBS Press Express |title=Valens Joins Forces with Rush to Find Her Abducted Drug-addicted Sister, and Jeffries Looks into a New Lead on the Case of a Murdered Teenaged Girl That Has Haunted Him for 17 Years, on the Seventh Season Finale, and Conclusion of a Two-part Episode, of "Cold Case," on Sunday, May 2 |access-date=30 July 2015 }}</ref>
! style="text-align:center" | #29
! style="text-align:center" | 6.3<ref name=TimBrooksRatings />
! style="text-align:center" | 9.86
|}

* In season 3 episode "A Perfect Day" ''Cold Case'' set a series rating record by attracting an audience of 19.36 million viewers.

===Cancellation===
''Cold Case'' began in September 2003 and quickly became a staple of the CBS Sunday night schedule. The crime drama had a successful first season and, by season two, was averaging a 3.5 rating in the 18–49 demographic and 15.1 million viewers. For the next couple seasons, total viewership fell slightly but the demographic numbers rose, reaching a 3.8 rating in season four.

In season five, the show averaged a 2.9 rating and just under 11 million viewers and ranked 28th. In season six, the ratings sank lower, to an average of a 2.7 rating but climbed up to 12 million viewers and ranked 20th. CBS made a choice between renewing ''[[Without a Trace]]'' and ''Cold Case''. They chose to keep ''Cold Case''. The real ratings trouble began in the final season, when the show's ratings dropped even further to a 2.15 rating in the 18–49 demographic and 9.6 million viewers. One reason for this is that the show aired at 10:00&nbsp;pm; the ratings dropped 25% to 9 million viewers.<ref name="tvseriesfinale.com">{{cite web |author=<!--Staff--> |date=22 May 2010 |title=Cold Case: CBS TV Show's Cancelled, No Season Eight |url=http://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/cold-case-canceled-season-eight-15540/ |publisher=TV Series Finale |access-date=19 June 2012 }}</ref> On November 22, 2009, CBS made a final attempt to increase the ratings by scheduling ''Cold Case'' at 9:00&nbsp;pm. The ratings increased to 10 million viewers, but it was short-lived because on February 14, 2010, ''Cold Case'' returned to its original schedule, at 10:00&nbsp;pm and the ratings dropped. The show concluded its run in May 2010 ranking at #29. More than two weeks after the series finale aired, CBS announced the show would not be renewed for an eighth season.<ref name="tvseriesfinale.com"/>

On May 18, 2010, CBS announced the cancellation of the series after seven seasons and 156 episodes.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/blogs/live-feed/cbs-cancels-shows-including-ghost-53669 |title=CBS cancels seven shows, including "Ghost", "Case" |last=Hibberd |first=James |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=May 18, 2010}}</ref>

Since it had become customary to end each season with a [[cliffhanger]], season 7's final episode, "[[List of Cold Case episodes|Shattered]]", ended leaving viewers wondering about the fates of several characters. The cancellation of the show left those questions unresolved.

In April 2024, a revival of the series was under discussion, but in September 2024 ''Deadline'' reported that a deal for the proposed series could not be reached between Warner Brothers Television and CBS.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Andreeva |first=Nellie |date=2024-09-18 |title=Zarna Garg Multi-Cam Comedy From Darlene Hunt, Mindy Kaling & Kevin Hart In Works At CBS |url=https://deadline.com/2024/09/zarna-garg-cbs-darlene-hunt-mindy-kaling-amp-kevin-hart-1236092437/ |access-date=2024-12-06 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Andreeva |first=Nellie |date=2024-04-12 |title='Cold Case' Reboot From Creator Meredith Stiehm Eyed By CBS |url=https://deadline.com/2024/04/cold-case-reboot-cbs-meredith-stiehm-1235882730/ |access-date=2024-12-06 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}}</ref>