NBC has signed a new production deal with prolific producer Dick Wolf, ensuring an 18th season of "Law & Order: SVU" and the continuation of his Chicago trilogy of dramas.
The deal, announced Monday, binds Wolf with NBC Universal through 2020, by which time he will likely have even more programs on the network's schedule.
Wolf had seemed close to the end of his run at NBC at the outset of this decade, with the long-running "Law & Order" franchise down to the one show. But he's come roaring back with his signature cut-from-the-headlines procedural dramas, this time focusing on Chicago.
The deal promises a second season of the newest drama, "Chicago Med." NBC had earlier renewed "Chicago Fire" and "Chicago P.D." Wolf has delivered a handful of crossover storylines where actors from one of the series appear in the others.
NBC said Wolf is also developing a fourth series, "Chicago Law." He's also at work on a reality series, "Law & Order: You the Jury," where the audience decides the verdict in a court case.
"He's been a defining voice of NBC for over a generation, and he is most welcome at this company forever," said Robert Greenblatt, NBC Entertainment chairman.
Wolf said his relationship with Greenblatt is better than he's ever had with a network chief.
"I've been in the same office, with the same phone number, for 30 years," he said. "I'm glad people won't have to learn a new one. Staying was really a foregone conclusion."
Financial terms were not disclosed.
