Starz announced the cancellation of four of its series, including “Blindspotting,” “Heels,” “Run the World” and “The Venery of Samantha Bird,” TheWrap has learned.
An individual with knowledge of the decisionmaking told TheWrap that the shows “unfortunately did not find a large enough audience” to be renewed for more episodes. A decision has yet to be made on the series “Minx,” which aired its Season 2 finale on Sept. 8.
The decision to remove the shows from the slate came after strong consideration, and per the insider, the network hopes to work with Rafael Casal (“Blindspotting”), Daveed Diggs (“Blindspotting”), Rachelle Williams-Benary (“Run the World”) and Mike O’Malley (“Heels”) in the future. Each of these shows have all aired their second seasons.
“The Venery of Samantha,” starring Katherine Langford and created by Anna Moriarty, only had two more episodes of its first season left to film, but the writers’ and actors’ strikes impacted its cancellation. Per its logline, “The Venery of Samantha,” followed a woman named Samantha who is visiting family in New England. While there she “reconnects with her childhood sweetheart and falls headlong into a seemingly perfect storybook romance. But the couple’s picture-perfect love story isn’t as sweet as it seems on the surface.” The series was produced by Lionsgate and Paramount Television Studios.
As for “Blindspotting,” which was created by Casal and Diggs, and served as a sequel to their 2018 film of the same name, the series centered on Ashley (Jasmine Cephas Jones) who moved in with her mother-in-law and half-sister after her husband Miles is incarcerated. Other cast members included Benjamin Earl Turner, Atticus Woodward, Candace Nicholas-Lippman, Jaylen Barron and Helen Hunt. Snoot Entertainment’s Jess Wu Calder and Keith Calder served as executive producers, alongside Ken Lee, Emily Gerson Saines and Tim Palen of Barnyard.
“Run the World” was created by Leigh Davenport, with Williams-Benary serving as showrunner for the second season and Yvette Lee Bowser executive produced. The series followed a group of Harlem-based friends who juggled their romantic relationships and professional lives. Andrea Bordeax, Amber Stevens West, Bresha Webb, Corbin Reid, Erika Alexander, Tosin Morohunfola, Nick Sagar and more starred in the series.
In “Heels,” Stephen Amell and Alexander Ludwig starred as two brothers who were also archenemies, playing along with their scripted matches while fighting over a promotion in their father’s wrestling empire. “Heels” was created by Michael Waldron. The cast included Alexander Ludwig, Mary McCormack, Chris Bauer, Allen Maldonado, Kelli Berglund, Alice Barrett Mitchell, Trey Tucker, Robby Ramos and more.
