NBC still has hope for 'Apprentice'

Silverman in talks with Trump, Burnett
By JOSEF ADALIAN


"The Apprentice" isn't fired just yet.

NBC's option on the Donald Trump/Mark Burnett skein was due to expire Friday, with the odds favoring the show's end. In fact, Trump said last week that he wasn't waiting for NBC to make a call and planned to walk away from the show.

Enter Ben Silverman.

NBC Universal's new entertainment guru has a longstanding relationship with Burnett. Within 48 hours of Silverman getting his gig, Burnett hooked up Silverman and Trump via telephone to discuss the possibility of continuing "The Apprentice."

Not surprisingly, Silverman wanted some time to see if a deal could be done.

"But Ben really made Donald feel comfortable and wanted, so he and Mark were happy to grant NBC an extension on the option," said one person from inside the Burnett camp familiar with the conversation.

As a result of the call, Burnett and Trump agreed to extend the Peacock's option on "Apprentice" until June 8. There's still no guarantee the show will be back on NBC, but the odds just got a little better.