‘Drunk History’ Canceled After 6 Seasons

Drunk History will not be moving forward with a seventh season as originally planned. The Comedy Central series, run by Derek Waters and Jeremy Konner, was revealed to have wrapped with its sixth season Wednesday during Deadline’s Emmy season virtual screening, despite another season being ordered last summer. The sixth and final season concluded on Aug. 6, 2019, and is up for three Emmy nominations: Outstanding Variety Sketch Series, Outstanding Costumes, and Production Design for a Reality/Variety/Competition series.

The series, which features inebriated celebrities recounting historical stories, which are in turn reenacted by an all-star cast of historical impersonators, has featured guests such as Tiffany Haddish, Winona Ryder, Maya Rudolph, Seth Rogen, Kirsten Dunst, Will Ferrell, Tessa Thompson, Vanessa Hudgens, Colin Hanks, Questlove and Lin-Manuel Miranda over the years.

Since the variety sketch category was launched in 2015, Drunk History has been nominated every year, racking up 17 Primetime Emmy nominations in its six years, including a win Outstanding Costumes in for a Variety Program or Special in 2015 for costume designer Christina Mongini and costume supervisor Cassandra Conners.

While Season 7 of Drunk History was in pre-production and tapings before the coronavirus pandemic prompted a halt to filming in mid-March, ViacomCBS’ Entertainment and Youth Group has been pivoting its programming strategies, focusing on adult animation rather than live-action shows. In the past few months, the network has announced a reboot of Beavis and Butt-Head and The Ren & Stimpy Show as well as Daria spinoff Jodie. With The Other Two and South Side relocating to HBO Max, the only remaining original live-action series on Comedy Cental after Drunk History‘s end is Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens.

Deadline reports that Waters, who led and starred in the series, will have a first-look deal with the network while he continues to work on new projects. The high cost of producing Drunk History, which includes the complicated historical reenactments, was part of the decision not to move forward with the seventh season.

In the Konner-directed Season 6 finale titled “Bad Blood,” Aubrey Plaza and David Wain star in the story of Cleopatra being overthrown by 11-year-old sister Arsinoe as Julius Caeser arrives in Alexandria. The episode, which was filmed months before the coronavirus pandemic hit, also featured a story about Typhoid Mary, who was played by Betsy Sodaro.