Starz Cancels 2 Major Shows

Starz reversed its decision to renew Dangerous Liaisons for a second season before the first debuted. The show debuted in early November and failed to attract a wide audience, leading Starz to rethink its support for the show. The premium cable network also canceled Step Up.

Starz had high hopes for Dangerous Liaisons, a prequel to the famous 1782 novel of the same name by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos. The network ordered a second season of the costume drama on Nov. 1, five days before the Season 1 premiere. Harriet Warner created the series, which starred Nicholas Denton, Alice Englert, and Hakeem Kae-Kazim. It was produced by Lionsgate Television, Playground Entertainment, and Flame Ventures.

Unfortunately for Starz, audiences were not as enthusiastic as network executives were. The show's premiere only attracted 88,000 total viewers, according to to live + same-day Nielsen data, reports Deadline. The show never attracted a six-figure audience for a live broadcast. Starz also never released data on delayed viewing, a sign that it may have failed to attract viewers even on the Starz app. The eighth and final episode will air on Jan. 1.

Starz also pulled the plug on Step Up, formerly known as Step Up: High Water, reports Deadline. The Lionsgate TV series began on YouTube. After Google pulled out of the original scripted content business, Starz (which is owned by Lionsgate), picked up the series for a third season. The finale will premiere next week.

Step Up was created by Holly Sorensen and is inspired by the film franchise. Singer Ne-Yo starred as Sage Odom, the founder of an Atlanta performing arts school, and his partner Collette, played by Christina Milian. Colette was originally played by the late Naya Rivera in the first two seasons. Faizon Love, Eric Graise, Terayle Hill, Enrique Murciano, and Tricia Helfer also starred in the series.

Last month, Starz canceled another costume drama. Becoming Elizabeth, which was created by Anya Reiss, was another miss and only averaged 136,000 live viewers during its first season. The show starred Alicia von Rittberg as Queen Elizabeth I. Anyone who liked the series and hoped to see Von Rittenberg's Elizabeth crowned will be out of luck though as the first season ended with King Edward VI's death.