WWE’s Friday Night SmackDown is now anticipated to maintain its three-hour broadcast length for the foreseeable future, a significant shift from earlier expectations that the program would revert to its traditional two-hour runtime starting June 6. This development was highlighted in a recent WrestleVotes Backstage Pass update.
The decision to continue with the extended format is reportedly driven by the USA Network, which is said to be “steadfast” in its preference for the three-hour duration. According to the WrestleVotes report, internal WWE sources indicate that USA Network executives are very pleased with the ratings performance SmackDown has achieved since the third hour was added earlier this year. This satisfaction has seemingly overridden an original agreement between WWE and the network, which stipulated that the broadcast for the week of May 30th would be the final three-hour installment.
The expansion to three hours commenced on January 3, 2025, and was initially presented as a temporary measure. The strategic intent behind this move was partly to ensure SmackDown remained competitive, particularly following WWE RAW’s transition to Netflix, and to bolster the show’s overall viewership on the USA Network.
Despite the network’s positive reception of the extended runtime, reports suggest that some backstage within WWE are not in favor of the three-hour format, citing concerns that it could diminish the show’s overall quality. Similar sentiments have been observed in fan discussions, with some viewers expressing a preference for the more concise two-hour version, worried about potential product dilution.
While the current direction points towards SmackDown continuing as a three-hour show, the situation is reportedly still fluid. Discussions about a potential return to a two-hour format are said to be ongoing, with speculation that such a change could occur as early as the fall television season, possibly around late September. However, no definitive timeline for a reversion has been officially announced.
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