'Shameless' boss says peak TV must end: 'Everybody can't continue to lose billions'
LOS ANGELES - John Wells is the kind of TV viewer most showrunners dread. The veteran writer and producer, now showrunner of Showtime's "Shameless," is as overwhelmed as the rest of us by the impossible ratio of TV shows-I-should-watch to available hours.
"I'll give up on things very quickly now," he says inside his office in Los Angeles. "If it doesn't get me fast, then I'm out, because there's too much other stuff that I know I should be watching."
Wells wastes little time listing some of the shows from the last year that did hold his attention: "There was no moment in 'Fleabag' that wasn't beautifully done. I hate to say I loved 'Chernobyl,' because it was very difficult watching, but I thought it was brilliantly done, and I just got completely immersed in that world. It took me a while to put it on because I was worried about it, just emotionally. I felt the same way about 'Unbelievable,' which I think is nigh-on perfect."
Wells is all too familiar with the pressure to engage viewers. Throughout his storied career, the former WGA president has been part of some of television's most acclaimed and popular series, including "China Beach," "ER" and "The West Wing." His production company, John Wells
