Reelz, the small independent cable network behind the live P.D. series “On Patrol: Live,” has landed distribution on Peacock. Reelz’s linear feed will be available to Peacock Premium and Peacock Premium Plus subscribers starting March 1. Some Reelz library content, including next-day episodes of “On Patrol: Live,” will also be available on-demand on the platform.
Reelz programming also includes “On Patrol: First Shift,” “Jail,” “Cops,” “Autopsy: The Last Hours of…” and more. The deal means Peacock subscribers will be able to stream “On Patrol: Live” on Peacock as it airs live on Reelz every Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to midnight ET.
“On Patrol: Live” is a revival of the long-running “Live PD,” which was canceled by A&E in 2020 during protests against police brutality after the killing of George Floyd. Producers Big Fish Entertainment reworked the series and took it to Reelz, where it premiered in July 2022. Earlier this month, Reelz ordered 90 new episodes of “On Patrol: Live,” keeping the series going through at least January 2024.
The show, hosted by Dan Abrams, has been a big success for Reelz. The network saw its primetime audience bounce 107% in 2022 thanks to the little-seen network’s coup in picking up “On Patrol: Live.” Last fall, A&E sued Reelz and the show’s producers, arguing it was copyright infringement of “Live P.D.” Peacock parent NBCUniversal divested its ownership stake in A&E back in 2012.
Owned by Hubbard Media Group and based in Albuquerque, Reelz is currently available in more than 40 million homes, including via DirecTV, Dish, Verizon FiOS, AT&T U-verse, and cable systems including Xfinity, Spectrum, Optimum and Mediacom. It’s also found on streaming services including Philo, Freecast, DIRECTV Stream and Dish Sling.
The addition of Reelz was also a strategic move for Peacock given its recent focus on true crime, uncluding “Casey Anthony: Where the Truth Lies,” which the streamer said launched as its most-watched unscripted series.
Peacock previously struck a deal with another indie cable outfit, Hallmark Media, last fall to stream live and on-demand programming from Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries and Hallmark Drama as part of a linear plus SVOD deal for that network.
Peacock is also exclusive streaming provider of WWE wrestling. Because of that category exclusivity, when Reelz airs Major League Wrestling live on Tuesday evenings at 10 p.m., its linear channel won’t be available on the platform during that time. But Major League Wrestling wraps up after 10 weeks, making Reelz’s Tuesday 10 p.m. linear offerings available after that.