Chuck Spies Six More Episodes; Ailing Trauma Axed

NBC has ordered six additional episodes of Chuck and will cancel Trauma after its original 13-episode run, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The pickup for Chuck — no Subway campaign needed this time — brings the spy dramedy's third-season order to 19 episodes. Chuck was slated to return in March after the Vancouver Olympics, but its expanded order, and Trauma's cancellation, could push up the show's premiere to January, the Reporter says. Calls to NBC were not immediately returned.

Trauma has become the third casualty of the fall season. The high-octane medical drama never pulled in the big numbers and was conspicuously absent in the Peacock's full-season order announcement last week for Mercy, Parks and Recreation and Community. Earlier this week, the network committed to airing three more episodes of Trauma. It will now end after wrapping up its 13-episode order.

Meanwhile, NBC is developing two new shows, including a legal drama with Idris Elba as executive producer, according to the Reporter. The as-yet-untitled series will follow a vigilante attorney who uses any means necessary to defend his clients. The network is also planning a drama about a crime-solving magician from NCIS scribe Dan Freeman, Variety reports. The series will focus on a magician who is recruited by a law-enforcement agency after he is forced to give up magic due to stage fright and agoraphobia.