Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring, which premiered on NBC on September 25, 2006. The series begins by telling the stories of apparently ordinary individuals from around the world who mysteriously develop superhuman abilities, and who then seek to use them to prevent the end of the world as foreseen in images produced by a precognitive painter. The series emulates the aesthetic style and storytelling of American comic books, using short, multi-episode story arcs that build upon a larger, more encompassing arc.The series is produced by Universal Media Studios in association with Tailwind Productions, and it is filmed primarily in Los Angeles, California. The executive producers are Allan Arkush, Dennis Hammer, Greg Beeman and Tim Kring.
The critically acclaimed first season's run of 23 episodes garnered an average of 14.3 million viewers in the United States, receiving the highest rating for any NBC drama premiere in five years. The second season of Heroes attracted an average of 13.1 million viewers in the U.S.,and marked NBC's sole series among the top 20 ranked programs in total viewership for the 2007–2008 season. A total of 24 episodes were ordered for the second season, but only eleven episodes were broadcast, due to the 100-day strike by the Writers Guild of America. The dispute led to the initial postponement and eventual cancellation of a six-episode spin-off titled Heroes: Origins. Heroes returned with its third season on September 22, 2008. NBC renewed the show for a fourth season.
A digital-internet extension of the series, Heroes 360 Experience, later rebranded as Heroes Evolutions, was created to explore the Heroes universe and provides insight into the show's mythology. Other official Heroes media include magazines, action figures, tie-in and interactive websites, a mobile game, a novel, clothing and other merchandise. NBC Universal announced on April 2, 2008, that NBC Digital Entertainment would release a series of online content for the summer and fall of 2008, including more original web content, wireless iTV interactivity, graphic novels available for mobile viewing and webisodes.
Heroes has garnered a number of awards and nominations. The series was nominated in eight categories at the 2007 Primetime Emmy awards, including Outstanding Drama Series, and was also nominated for Best Television Series-Drama at the 2007 Golden Globes. The series won a People's Choice Award in 2007 in the category of Best New Drama, and was named Program of the Year in 2007 by the Television Critics Association and Best International Program at the 2008 BAFTA Awards.
