‘Hoops’ Canceled at Netflix After Just 1 Season

Netflix debuted Hoops, an adult animated comedy about high school basketball, on Aug. 21. Months later, the streaming service decided to pull the plug. Netflix canceled the Jake Johnson-led series after only one season, bringing about an early end to the animated high school basketball team.

According to Variety, Netflix looked at the viewership versus its cost before deciding not to proceed with another season. The animated show also struggled with critical ratings following its release. It holds a 14% critical approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The audience score sits just under 50% despite several people regularly tweeting about the show being “hilarious” and “legendary.”

“This foulmouthed animated comedy isn’t half the joke machine it would need to be in order to justify its total lack of nuance,” wrote Caroline Framke, who reviewed the show for Variety. Other critics said that the use of profanity “quickly numbs the viewer” and that the show comes across as trying too hard to be naughty.

Hoops starred Johnson as the character of Coach Ben Hopkins. Early information prior to the show’s release listed Hopkins as a “hot-headed, foul-mouthed high school basketball coach who thinks turning around his godawful team will take him to the ‘big leagues.’” The trailers and clips also confirmed this description.

In particular, one clip featured Hopkins attempting to explain why the “follow-through” is the essential part of shooting hoops. However, he proceeded to miss each shot. This failure led to Johnson uttering several swear words in front of his high school basketball team.

Along with Johnson, Hoops also starred several comedic actors. The list included Ron Funches, Cleo King, Natasha Leggero, A.D. Miles, Steve Berg, Rob Riggle and Sam Richardson. Nick Swardson, Eric Edelstein, Mary Holland, Gil Ozeri and Max Greenfield all made guest appearances during the first season.

Ben Hoffman, who worked with Johnson and Greenfield on New Girl, created the series and served as executive producer. He also voiced the character Time Bomb. Phil Lord and Chris Miller served as executive producers along with Johnson and Seth Cohen. Bento Box Entertainment served as the animation house during the creation process while 20th Century served as the studio.

With Hoops now canceled, Netflix viewers have more limited options for adult animated series. There are current shows such as Bill Burr’s F is for Family, Big Mouth and Disenchantment. Additionally, there are upcoming shows in Agent King and Entergalactic.