Lifetime Bringing Back 'Drop Dead Diva' for Season 5

Lifetime

"Drop Dead Diva"

Lifetime is bringing back Drop Dead Diva for a fifth season, The Hollywood Reporter confirms.

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The news comes as a reversal after Lifetime canceled the hourlong drama in January after talks with studio Sony Pictures Television about cost-cutting options stalled. The decision to bring back the series suggests that the two sides have reached a new, more cost-effective agreement.

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Drop Dead Diva centers on an aspiring model, Deborah "Deb" Dobkins, who was killed in a car crash and is brought back to life as lawyer Jane Bingum (Brooke Elliot). The season four finale, which marked a season-high 2.76 million viewers in September, ended on a cliffhanger with Jane's new husband Owen (Lex Medlin) dying and coming back to life with old Jane's soul.

Margaret Cho, April Bowlby, Kate Levering, Jackson Hurst, Josh Stamberg and Carter MacIntyre co-starred on the series, which made headlines when it cast Kim Kardashian in a recurring part.

For creator/executive producer Josh Berman, Drop Dead Diva's return to the small screen is a reprieve. His freshman Fox effort The Mob Doctor ended its 13-episode run Jan. 7 and likely would have been pulled sooner had the network had a deeper bench.

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With Drop Dead Diva coming back, it will join scripted dramas The Client List, returning March 10; the recently rebooted Army Wives; upcoming drama Witches of East End; and Marc Cherry's rookie soap Devious Maids (acquired from ABC).

Drop Dead Diva is the latest show to come back from cancellation. AMC is prepping its third season of The Killing, which had been axed before the network reversed its decision.

E-mail: Philiana.Ng@thr.com
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