We'll miss you, Aaron…

by Diane

Bartlet for President '06After four years running NBC’s “The West Wing,” the show’s creator and exec producer has elected to leave the Warner Bros. TV-produced White House drama. Exec producer-helmer Thomas Schlamme is also ankling.

“Creative and financial differences with the net and studio may have played a role in Sorkin’s decision, but were not likely the determining factor. Both men have at least another year left on their deals with WBTV.

“John Wells, who’s also been an exec producer on the show since its start, has agreed to take on an expanded role at the series, essentially serving as showrunner. Execs at NBC and WBTV asked Wells to take the reins when Sorkin and Schlamme informed them of their plans.”

…Sigh. For a few years, now, this has been the only television outside of the news that I watch regularly: the only show for which, when it’s on, everything else in the house stops. And it’s been the scripts that have made the difference. As “West Wing” fans, we’ve been lucky to be in Ireland: RTE (I have to leave the fada off the E, it upsets the RSS feed…) is one of only two English-language European broadcasters to be carrying it — E4, Channel 4’s pay service, is the other — and RTE is also showing current-season episodes rather than airing them long after the US season is over. (I still wonder how they managed that deal with WB.)

Well, we’ll see how it goes from here. I fear the worst, but I’d be glad to be proven wrong.

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