Nickandmore!

Nickelodeon has doubled the episode order of Sam & Cat’s first season from 20 to 40 episodes.

The series is currently in production on episode 18 – which completes filming tomorrow (July 12). After the next two episodes wrap this summer, the series will return to production on the second-half of the season this fall.

This is actually not the first time a Dan Schneider-produced series received a massive order from Nick. In fact, before iCarly even premiered, the first season of that show was increased to 40 episodes. However, only 25 episodes ended up being produced that season due to the 2007-08 writers strike, which forced production to stop in early 2008. The series made up for it in season two with a massive 45 episode order.

The full press release from Nick follows:

NICKELODEON GREENLIGHTS ADDITIONAL 20 EPISODES OF TOP-RATED COMEDY “SAM & CAT,” STARRING JENNETTE MCCURDY AND ARIANA GRANDE

Santa Monica, Calif. – July 11, 2013 – Nickelodeon has ordered 20 additional episodes of its top-rated comedy Sam & Cat, it was announced today by Russell Hicks, President, Content Development and Production, Nickelodeon. Sam & Cat is currently the network’s number-one live-action series, averaging 3.7 million total viewers since launch. The series airs regularly Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. (ET/PT) on Nickelodeon.

“Kids have already shown their love for Jennette and Ariana’s crazy adventures and comedic talent in Sam & Cat,” said Hicks. “We are thrilled to be delivering even more of their wild antics from this successful series.”

Sam & Cat drew over 4.2 million viewers with its series premiere making it the network’s biggest live-action debut in three years. Additionally, since its June 8 launch, Sam & Cat is the number-one live-action series on the Nick App, and the most visited page (http://www.nick.com/samandcat) on Nick.com. The premiere episode of the series hit the number-one spot on the iTunes TV episode chart, and all episodes since consistently rank among the top episodes on iTunes.

Brand-new episodes of Sam & Cat will continue to roll out this year and debut on Nick channels internationally beginning October. Special upcoming guest stars include iconic comedy duo Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams (Laverne & Shirley), in their first appearance in a scripted series in over 30 years, and Sophia Grace and Rosie of The Ellen DeGeneres Show who reprise their roles as troublemakers Gwen and Ruby.

For a unique opportunity to be part of Sam & Cat, fans can visit http://SAMandCAT.nick.com to submit photos of themselves for the chance to see them appear in future episodes of the show. The site is also home to the “Lil’ Sam & Cat Show,” a series of animated shorts that give a behind-the-scenes look at how Sam & Cat is made and what life is like on set with Jennette McCurdy and Ariana Grande.

Starring Jennette McCurdy (iCarly’s Sam Puckett) and Ariana Grande (Victorious’ Cat Valentine), Sam & Cat follows the duo as they become best friends and unlikely roommates who start a babysitting service. The series is created by award-winning executive producer Dan Schneider (iCarly, Victorious, Drake & Josh, Zoey 101).

Nickelodeon, now in its 34th year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books and feature films. Nickelodeon’s U.S. television network is seen in almost 100 million households and has been the number-one-rated basic cable network for 18 consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB).