• The Hollywood Reporter, Friday, April 20, 2007 11:15 AM

Following a month of talks, the future for NBC crime dramas "Law & Order" and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," remains unsolved. Following rumors about the cancellation of the original series, a meeting between reps for creator Dick Wolf and the network moved it back into "undecided" status. Negotiations between the two are apt to stretch into next month before any decisions are made.

"Law & Order: SVU," meanwhile, has already been renewed. "Talks have been taking place and continue to take place about the future of both "Law & Order" and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," " Wolf says. "I think the discussions have reached a productive stage, and it's my finest hope that we will find a way to have both shows picked up. I feel that creatively they are remarkably strong.

"L&O," in its 17th season, and "L&O: CI," in its sixth, are expensive to produce, with ensemble casts and New York-based production. And while their ratings are steady, they have fallen from their higher levels of several years ago.

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