Updated May 25 at 10:13 p.m. PT with “The Expanse” officially revived by Amazon for Season 4.
Said Alcon Entertainment Co-Founders and Co-CEOs Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson: “We couldn’t be more excited that ‘The Expanse’ is going to continue on Amazon Prime! We are deeply grateful that Jeff Bezos, Jen Salke, and their team at Amazon have shown such faith in our show. We also want to thank Laura Lancaster, head of Alcon Television for her tireless efforts. We are fully aware that this wouldn’t have been possible if it wasn’t for the staggering outpouring of support from the most creative, hardest working sci-fi fans around the world. From reddit campaigns to airplanes, we say thank you. It worked!”
Is there an afterlife? For all the beloved TV shows that recently got the axe, fans sure hope so.
Following a slew of cancellations doled out by broadcast networks ahead of their upfront presentations in New York City last week, studios are shopping around several axed properties in hopes they will be picked up on other platforms.
And fans are rallying to lend their support for the efforts via #Save[InsertYourFavoriteCanceledShowHere] campaigns on social media. Seeing as that actually worked for “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” which was revived by NBC just one day after Fox cut it loose, viewers (and studios) appear more hopeful for the future of other killed-off programs.
Here the TheWrap rounds up the statuses of several canceled series (and a couple more-than-likely-to-be-canceled series) that are sitting in limbo waiting to see if they are granted new life at Netflix, Hulu, Amazon or another network.
1. “Timeless”
OK, Clockblockers, you can stop screaming before you start, because we know the Eric Kripke series hasn’t been canceled by NBC — yet. And yes, it was canceled and then revived last year. But its sophomore season’s Nielsen ratings weren’t great and an insider tells TheWrap chances are, if it does get canceled, the Peacock will not bring it back again — no matter how much you campaign this time. Now, the good news is that if it is nixed, Sony Television has the ability to shop it elsewhere. But an individual with knowledge of the situation tells TheWrap the studio is waiting to make a move until NBC makes theirs.
2. “The Expanse” — UPDATE: OFFICIALLY REVIVED BY AMAZON FOR SEASON 4 ON MAY 25
Said Alcon Entertainment Co-Founders and Co-CEOs Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson: “We couldn’t be more excited that ‘The Expanse’ is going to continue on Amazon Prime! We are deeply grateful that Jeff Bezos, Jen Salke, and their team at Amazon have shown such faith in our show. We also want to thank Laura Lancaster, head of Alcon Television for her tireless efforts. We are fully aware that this wouldn’t have been possible if it wasn’t for the staggering outpouring of support from the most creative, hardest working sci-fi fans around the world. From reddit campaigns to airplanes, we say thank you. It worked!”
This Syfy drama is pretty much in the best position out of all the series on this list, and also happens to be the only one on cable. As TheWrap previously reported, Amazon Studios is in talks with Alcon Entertainment Television to bring the show back to life for a fourth season on its streaming platform. No deal has been struck as of yet, but we’ll keep you posted.
3. “The Mick” and “The Last Man on Earth”
We’re gonna group these two Fox comedies together because their status is word-for-word identical. They were canceled on the same day as “Nine-Nine,” but didn’t get as lucky as the Universal TV property. An insider tells TheWrap that 20th Century Fox is always looking for other homes for dead series, but there hasn’t been real interest in this pair yet.
4. “Lucifer”
If Tom Ellis had it his way, he would probably create a network to help bring the devil back from hell. Yes, the lead in the recently canceled Fox drama is also leading the campaign to save the show. Ellis said in a recent interview with BBC Newsnight that the outcry from fans after it was killed by the network has been so great that it “sparked” a conversation to move it to another platform — but he can’t say where. An individual close to the situation tells TheWrap that Warner Bros. TV is actively looking for a new platform for “Lucifer.”
Until then, Lucifans can also look forward to two more episodes of “Lucifer” airing next Monday. Originally scheduled to air as part of Season 4, the “bonus” episodes were filmed earlier this spring.
5. “Designated Survivor”
The Kiefer Sutherland-led political drama was one of the many series canceled by ABC before they announced their 2018-19 slate of programming. However, as TheWrap previously reported, conversations quickly began between studio eOne and Netflix to bring it to the streaming platform. No deal has been finalized there though. But again, we’ll update you when we hear something.
6. “Ghosted”
Now, we know that a) the remaining episodes of the Adam Scott and Craig Robinson-led comedy have yet to air on Fox and b) it has not actually been canceled. But, TheWrap has also heard things aren’t looking great for the freshman series and if it is axed, the 20th Century Fox show will probably be getting the same treatment as “The Mick” and “Last Man on Earth.”
7. “Taken”
After being bumped from the schedule in April, “Taken” was officially canceled by NBC earlier this month after two seasons. However, an insider with knowledge of the situation told TheWrap at the time that the series — based on the popular movie franchise starring Liam Neeson — was already being shopped around by studios Universal Television and EuropaCorp TV USA.