Law & Order: Special Victims Unit will be returning in the fall for a 16th season, NBC revealed on Wednesday.
The current season has done fairly well in the ratings, but did not receive an early renewal due to prolonged negotiations between the network and producer Dick Wolf, reports Deadline. Wolf was asked to take a pay cut initially, but he wasn't too interested, leaving many wondering if the show would shut down and had showrunner Warren Leight looking for his next project.
However a deal was eventually struck, giving Wolf three programs on the air for the fall season. Chicago Fire and spinoff Chicago P.D. were renewed earlier.
SVU has averaged a 2.5 in the advertiser-important 18-49 demographic and 8.4 million viewers in its 15th season on the air, with both numbers a decent improvement upon last season.
With the procedural set to return, Leight will stay on as showrunner, according to Variety, while Wolf, Peter Jankowski, Julie Martin and Jonathan Starch are still on board as executive producers.