‘Z Nation’ renewed for a second season

“Z Nation” will live again. The zombie series will be picked for a second season, SyFy and North by Northwest Productions announced on Monday. Rich Cowan, co-founder of North by Northwest, called the decision great news. “We’re showing the TV and film industry that we can deliver network episodic television directly out of Spokane,” he said. “We’re thrilled and so happy for the crew.” The series, which just aired episode six on Friday night, employs some 200 people during filming, which is on location in and around Spokane. Cowan said it was notable that the second season was announced so quickly. “We just aired episode six,” he said. “They pulled the trigger because the ratings have been higher than anticipated.” So far this season, “Z Nation” has been SyFy’s third highest-rated scripted show, behind “Dominion” and “Defiance,” with an average of 1.4 million viewers. Cowan could not say yet if season 2 will be filmed in Eastern Washington, pending contract negotiations.