NBC canceled Abby’s, The Village and The Enemy Within, all after just one season on the air.
The peacock network delayed their decision on the shows for as long as possible, leaving their futures hanging in the air before the upfront presentation earlier this month.
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“The next season’s schedule is fluid, we want to give those shows a chance to fulfill their run and we’ll take another look at them then,” NBC Co-Chairmen George Cheeks told reporters on May 12, reports Deadline. “Remember we program 52 weeks a year so there are a lot of slots.”
It was no surprise that all three shows failed to get sophomore seasons, as none of them were breakout hits or became critical favorites. Abby’s still has a few more episodes to go, with another episode airing Thursday at 8 p.m. ET. Meanwhile, The Enemy Within wrapped up its 13-episode run on May 20. The Village ran 10 episodes, ending on May 21.
Abby’s was a unique comedy, filmed outside with a live audience. Natalie Morales starred as Abby, who ran an illegal bar in her backyard. The cast also included Neil Flynn, Jessica Chaffin, Nelson Franklin, Leonard Ouzts and Kimia Behpoornia. It was created by Josh Malbuth and included The Good Place‘s Michael Schur as one of the executive producers.
Abby’s only averaged 2 million viewers and a 0.6 18-49 rating in Live+7.
The Enemy Within was created by former The Mentalist writer Ken Woodruff and starred Jennifer Carpenter as a former CIA director charged with treason. Morris Chestnut played an FBI agent who recruits her to track down a terrorist. The show mustered just 3.7 million viewers and a 0.6 18-49 rating in Live+same day numbers.
NBC had high hopes for Mike Daniels’ The Village, but its fate was the polar opposite of This Is Us‘. The series focused on an ensemble cast of characters who all live in a Brooklyn apartment building together. The cast featured Moran Atias, Dominic Chianese, Warren Christie, Frankie Faison, Jerod Hayned, Daren Kagasoff, Michaela MacManus, Lorraine Toussaint and Grace Van Dien.
The three shows join two-season sitcom A.P. Bio, which was canceled on May 25. The show starred Glenn Howerton (It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia) as a disgraced Ivy League philosophy professor who moves back to his hometown to teach an A.P. biology class. Patton Oswalt, who played the school’s principal, has been actively trying to get a streaming service to save it.
“This has…not been a great day,” Oswalt tweeted. “Please read this thread and know everyone on [A.P. Bio] had the most fun making that show and we’re sad that none of us get to see where it was gonna go. But we’re glad for the trip we got to take. Thank you, [creator Mike O’Brien].”
Photo credit: NBC
