TBS Sitcom Canceled Just Hours Before Season Premiere

The bloodbath at TBS continued on Monday as Warner Bros. Discovery continues looking to cut costs and change the direction of its cable brands. TBS canceled Chad, a coming-of-age comedy created by and starring former Saturday Night Live star Nasim Pedrad, hours before Season 2 was scheduled to premiere. The entire season has already been filmed, and TBS leadership will assist Chad’s producers in finding a new home for the show, sources told Deadline.

Chad starred Pedrad as Chad Amani, a 14-year-old Persian-American boy navigating high school and trying to be popular. The first season debuted in April 2021 and was met with critical acclaim and strong ratings. TBS quickly renewed the show for a second season, but the episodes will not air as Warner Bros. Discovery takes TBS in a new direction. The new company also canceled Damon Wayans’ Kill the Orange-Faced Bear weeks before production was set to start and the reality dating show The Big D days before its July 7 premiere.

“As we continue to assess content and implement a new strategy for our network, we can now share that season two of Chad will not air on TBS,” a TBS spokesperson told Deadline. “We are proactively exploring various options to find the right home for it. We celebrate and thank Nasim Pedrad, the passionate creator, executive producer, and star of the series, for sharing a bold, unexpected coming-of-age story with heart and humor. We also thank executive producer Oly Obst, co-showrunner Max Searle, and the entire cast and crew of Chad for their ongoing partnership and wish everyone continued success.”

TBS executives appear to be willing to help Pedrad and her collaborators find a new home for Chad. Any deal would include the already-produced Season 2 episodes, the eight episodes from Season 1, and a possible Season 3 renewal. This is similar to YouTube’s decision to help Sony Pictures TV find a new home for Cobra Kai on Netflix after YouTube decided to stop working on scripted shows.

In her own statement to Deadline, Pedrad said she understands the television landscape is changing but did not expect her show to be a casualty of the Warner Bros.-Discovery merger. “I’ve spent the last year making a season of television I’m really proud of. From the writers’ room to production through the edit, a team of very talented and dedicated people came together to tell a story we believe in,” Pedrad said. “A hard comedy that portrays Middle Eastern characters from a place of empathy and humanity. I feel so lucky that Chad has an incredibly loyal fanbase. I know they’re going to love this season and I’m excited for the show to find a new home.”

Chad was a longtime passion project for Pedrad. It started as a pilot at Fox in 2016, but the network dropped the project. Three years later, TBS stepped in and ordered 10 episodes. A teaser trailer was released in May 2019, but the first season did not debut until April 2021. It was the top-rated new scripted cable series last year. Chad also starred Jake Ryan, Saba Homayoon, Paul Chahidi, Ella Mila, and Alexa Loo. TBS released trailers announcing Chad Season 2 would premiere on July 11 in February and May.