Justified type TV Show network FX

UPDATED: Looks like FX is officially sticking to Raylan Givens’ guns: As anticipated, the network has announced that it has renewed fan favorites Justified and Archer for their third seasons. The renewal makes plenty of sense for the cable network. After all, Justified — starring Timothy Olyphant — has enjoyed burgeoning ratings, which have ticked up 8 percent during season 2, while Archer was up 22 percent from last season.

“Justified was a critically acclaimed hit series in its first season, but the show has far surpassed our expectations this season,” President and General Manager of FX Networks John Landgraf said in a release. “Creatively, the show is on a roll. The performances of Timothy Olyphant, Walton Goggins, Margo Martindale and the entire cast are extraordinary. Graham Yost and his team of writers are delivering some of the richest stories anywhere on TV and are doing a brilliant job of being true to Elmore Leonard’s original character, Raylan Givens. We couldn’t be more proud of the work everyone has done.”

It doesn’t hurt that Elmore Leonard, the author who created the Raylan Givens character, digs the show, which will get 13 episodes next season. “I always say that the best review we’ve ever received on Justified is the fact that Elmore Leonard gets a kick out of the show,” creator Yost said in the release. “I must add to that. Now tied for the best feedback we’ve ever received is the news that a network as cool and original and supportive as FX is bringing us back for another year.”

EW spoke with Justified executive producer Graham Yost this morning, hours before he and the rest of the cast were scheduled to appear at FX’s Upfront presentation in New York, and he hinted that good news was on the horizon.

“You know, listen I would be surprised if there wasn’t an announcement in the next 12 hours — or few hours. I think the reservations [for the trip to New York] would have been cancelled if not,” he joked. “In the hope of [renewal] and the trust in that, we’re really excited. It’s a really fun show to do.”

UPDATE: FX officially announced at its upfront presentation that Archer is getting a hefty 16-episode pickup. Three episodes will air in September paired with It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, with 13 running early next year and will be paired with a new comedy (likely a project called Townies being developed by a trio of Sunny writers).

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