Suits LA is a spin-off of the immensely popular legal drama series Suits, which aired on USA Network for eight seasons between 2011 and 2019. The spin-off takes place in the eponymous city and revolves around Stephen Amell’s Ted Black, a former prosecutor who becomes a successful entertainment lawyer. The original show features a lot of profanities, F-bombs, and curse words. In comparison, Suits LA is a family-friendly series. In a new interview, Aaron Korsh, the creator of both shows, explained the reasons behind it.
Aaron Korsh says Suits LA will average ‘three ‘god—-its’ per episode’
Aaron Korsh explained in a recent interview that Suits LA has considerably fewer curse words, F-bombs, and profanities than the original show due to policies implemented by NBC, on which the spin-off is set to air. Notably, Suits reportedly has an average of five curse words every episode, whereas the spin-off is limited to three “god—-its” per episode.
“Having it be on a [broadcast] network as opposed to basic cable, we had to make some changes,” Korsh elaborated during an interview with Entertainment Weekly. “They cannot curse, they can’t say ‘s—,’ they can’t say ‘f—.’ So you will hear some ‘g——its,’ but you won’t hear as many as you heard [on Suits],” he added.
Amell jokingly told the same outlet that all the curse words were reserved for him. He added, “I was actually filming a scene the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and we had a couple of takes where there was no ‘god—-,’ and I threw in a ‘god—-.'”
As Korsh noted, NBC is a broadcast channel, while USA Network is basic cable. The former has a bigger audience as anyone with a TV and an antenna can theoretically access it. In contrast, USA Network is only available to those with a cable subscription. Accordingly, shows that air on NBC and other broadcast channels must adhere to a stricter set of rules than the ones airing on cable.
Moreover, the airing time of Suits LA is slated to be 9:00 p.m. ET/PT, when children in many households are still very much awake. As a result, the series creators have to be extremely careful about what they air.
The show is scheduled to premiere on NBC on February 23, 2025.