FOX Cancels Controversial Show Quietly

FOX viewers have been on edge wondering if some of their favorite shows are coming back. While many programs are in limbo, the network has revealed one will not return. Labor of Love, a divisive dating series that ran from May 21 to July 16, 2020, is canceled. The show only lasted one season of eight episodes. The program, hosted by Sex and the City actress Kristin Davis, followed a woman, Kristy Katzmann, as she searched for a man to start a family with. The cancellation occurred quietly, with Rob Wade, who heads up FOX’s “alternative entertainment” productions, sneaking the update in during a recent chat with Variety’s Michael Schneider.

Labor of Love is the only currently unrenewed show that the show has formally passed on. Wade insisted that the fates of the following shows were still up in the air: America’s Most Wanted, Cherries Wild, Crime Scene Kitchen, Game of Talents, Holmes Family Effect, Lego Masters, The Masked Dancer, Mental Samurai, Name That Tune and Ultimate Tag. There are also new shows still awaiting word on their futures, singing competition Alter Ego and Gordon Ramsay’s Next Level Chef.

“It’s like being at a blackjack table and you know you’ve got a good hand, but do you throw it back and see if you can do better? And maybe you’ll get another Masked Singer, or Hell’s Kitchen or whatever,” Wade said. “It’s a difficult decision to make because all the shows have gone well, or well enough to think, ‘I can bring that back and it would absolutely do a good number,’ but now we have to sort of weigh all those things up. That’s really determining on how much new stuff we buy.”

Davis has not spoken out on the news, but she’s likely not too hurt about losing the gig. She’s currently filming And Just Like That…, the sequel series to HBO’s Sex and the City. Katzmann has also not addressed the cancellation, but it’s worth noting that things did not work out between her and winner Kyle Klinger, who outlasted 14 other men including former WWE Superstar Matt Kaye (a.k.a Matt Striker) and Survivor alum Marcus Lehman. In the time since the show aired, Katzmann has continued to be open about her fertility struggles. She also expressed her disappointment in the reaction to Labor of Love, saying she received “fire and hate” from viewers that “broke [her] heart for humanity.” For those still curious to watch the show, it’s currently streaming for free on Tubi.