Chuck

Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak created Chuck, an American series that mixes action, comedy and espionage. It premiered on NBC on September 24, 2007, and ended with a two-hour finale on January 27, 2012, after five seasons and 91 episodes of about 42 minutes each. A fan campaign rescued it from cancellation.

The story centers on Chuck Bartowski (Zachary Levi), a socially awkward computer whiz who works at an electronics store in Burbank. On his birthday he gets an email from Bryce Larkin, an old college friend now at the CIA. The message plants the only remaining copy of America's greatest spy secrets in Chuck's brain, making him a prized asset for the CIA and NSA. To protect him, the NSA assigns Major John Casey and the CIA assigns its top agent, Sarah Walker (Yvonne Strahovski). The cast also includes Joshua Gomez, Ryan McPartlin, Mark Christopher Lawrence, Vik Sahay and Scott Krinsky.

The first season was cut to 13 episodes by the writers' strike; the second ran 22. When ratings sagged, fans ran an unusual campaign aimed at sponsor Subway, whose major deal with NBC helped cover the third season's costs. That season's premiere drew 7.7 million viewers. McG, College Hill Pictures, Wonderland Sound and Vision and Warner Bros. Television produced it.