Three of ABC’s primetime dramas won’t make it to the 2023-24 schedule. On Friday, the Alphabet network canceled Big Sky, Alaska Daily and The Company You Keep.
The CW on Thursday canceled two more series as network owner Nextstar continues to whittle down its roster of scripted shows. Kung Fu and Supernatural prequel The Winchesters — both produced by Warner Bros. TV, one of The CW’s former owners — won’t return to the network in 2023-24. Kung Fu ran for three seasons, while The Winchesters ends after a single season. The cancellations follow that of first-year show Walker: Independence, which comes from the network’s other former owner, CBS Studios, on Tuesday.
No more tropical island escapes for Fox: the network is not renewing Fantasy Island for a third season. Fox greenlit the contemporary version of the classic drama series in 2021. The series, which takes place at a luxury resort, starred Roselyn Sanchez stars as Elena Roarke, a descendant of the original series’ enigmatic Mr. Roarke. The series was done under a low-cost business model, so its threshold for success was lower. But Fox still decided to have the sun set on its summer series.
On Tuesday, The CW canceled Walker prequel Walker Independence after one season. The move, which was expected, followed the CW’s renewal of mothership series Walker earlier in the day. The bulk of the CW’s existing scripted series will be canceled this week as the network is transitioning to a new business model of lower-cost scripted programming in pursuit of profitability.
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CBS is dropping the ax on East New York and True Lies after one season. The CBS dramas’ Season 1 finales will now mark the end of both shows, airing Sunday, May 14, and Wednesday, May 17, respectively.
In the highest-profile cancellation so far this upfront, CBS has opted not to renew S.W.A.T. for a seventh season. Its upcoming Season 6 finale will serve as a series finale. The show’s demise illustrates the harsh economic realities of the broadcast business as S.W.A.T. has done what was asked of it this season — it has been a rare TV series to rise in linear viewership year-to-year by double digits following its move to Fridays, where the drama has flourished. It may be the most watched broadcast series to get the axe this season.
On Friday, the network canceled comedy Call Me Kat after three seasons. The show has seen dwindling ratings, particularly in its third season.
Vice News Tonight celebrated its 1,000th episode this past March, and now the award-winning weekly news program is being canceled. The cancellation, which will officially take place in May, comes as Vice Media Group begins layoffs within its Vice News unit.
Netflix’s Bling Empire has fallen. Both the original series and its spinoff, Bling Empire: New York, have been canceled. Inspired by the big-screen success of Crazy Rich Asians, the first series focused on a group of Asian-American socialites in Los Angeles. Bling Empire‘s first season premiered in January 2021, followed by a second in May 2022.
The network has canceled its medical drama after six seasons. The decision comes nearly three months after The Resident, produced by Disney’s 20th Television, finished its 13-episode sixth season.
The network has canceled the dancing competition, which starred Nick Jonas, Liza Koshy and Shakira, after one season. The decision, which was made a few months ago, comes after the show, which was hosted by Camille Kostek, premiered last May and ran for eight episodes. The news emerged after NBC set its summer lineup.
CBS Media Ventures’ nationally syndicated daytime talk show Rachael Ray will be coming to an end after its current 17th season when it will stop original production. “In my more than 20 plus years in television I have had 17 wonderful seasons working in daytime television with Rachael,” Ray said in a statement. “However I’ve made the decision that’s it’s time for me to move on to the next exciting chapter in my broadcast career.”
Succession, the Emmy-winning HBO drama that helped redefine the premium cable network following the end of Game of Thrones, is ending. Creator and showrunner Jesse Armstrong revealed that the upcoming fourth season will indeed be its final run on the Warner Bros. Discovery-backed premium cable network.
The Goldbergs’ journey through the 1980s is over. The family comedy’s current 10th season will be its last, with the May season finale serving as a series finale.
Judge Mathis and The People’s Court are ending their long TV runs, both victims of challenging market conditions within the daytime syndication landscape. Judge Mathis has been on the air for 24 seasons, winning a 2018 Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Legal/Courtroom Program. It was the first court show featuring an African American jurist to win. The People’s Court won four Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Legal/Courtroom Program in 2014, 2015, 2020 and 2021, which is the most wins for a court show in this category, and received 12 nominations. The People’s Court is the first court show to use binding arbitration, introducing the format into the genre in 1981, and it is the first popular, long-running reality series in the judicial genre.
As it approaches one full decade on the air, The Blacklist is coming to a close at NBC. The drama series’ upcoming 10th season will include its 200th episode, will be its last. The season premieres on Feb. 26.
Another daytime fixture, Dr. Phil McGraw, is leaving after more than two decades as one of television’s most popular talk show hosts. His syndicated daytime show, Dr. Phil, will end its run of original episodes with the current 2022-2023 television season, the show’s 21st. McGraw’s decision comes as his most recent contract is coming to an end. Dr. Phil received a five-season renewal in 2018 as part of a mega-deal extension with CBS Media Ventures, taking it through its current season.
One of CBS’s longest-running scripted shows, NCIS: Los Angeles, will be coming to an end after 322 episodes. Its current 14th season will be the show’s last, with the series finale set for May 14, airing on the network and streaming live and on demand on Paramount+. The NCIS spinoff, starring LL Cool J and Chris O’Donnell, is tied as the fifth longest-running CBS primetime scripted series ever, behind only Gunsmoke, Lassie, CSI and Criminal Minds.
