The Most Shocking TV Cancellations Of 2024

2024 has been one long roller coaster of a year, and it hasn't been sedate in the television world either. While it's always been a truly cyclical business, not everything a network launches will have a smooth landing. For every new show that has taken or will take its first bow in 2024, there were a bunch of series which came to an end. Some of those endings were pre-planned, some of them were a surprise, and a handful were completely shocking. 

Whether it was a cult pirate show with a devoted following, a critically-acclaimed musical comedy,  a well-liked franchise favorite, or a high concept fantasy series with a big following, they all met with the cancellation bear's teeth this year. Their deaths were shocking for an assortment of reasons — some of them even to the talent behind the camera. But nevertheless, here's a list of the most surprising and stunning series cancellations of the year thus far. 

As a musical sitcom with original songs, choreography and dancing, "Schmigadoon!" pleased both critics and viewers. Like fellow quirky comedy-musical "Galavant" before it, however, "Schmigadoon!" could not be saved by its cult popularity and was canceled after two seasons. The show focused on Melissa Gimble (Cecily Strong) and Josh Skinner (Keegan-Michael Key), two doctors whose romance has been failing. While on a hike, they accidentally stumble upon the musical town of Schmigadoon and become trapped within its cheery confines. They are told they can't leave unless they find true love — which they may or may not find with each other. 

Season 2 spoofed musicals from the 1960s and '70s like "Chicago" and "Cabaret," as the characters find themselves trapped in the seedy, noirish big city of Schmicago. Dissatisfied with their marriage, their task is to break through the cynicism of Schmicago and find a happy ending. 

The conclusion of "Schmigadoon!" may have come as a shock to its fanbase, but no one was more stunned than its producers and writers, who had completed 25 songs and all of the scripts for Season 3 before Apple TV+ announced its decision. Co-creator Cinco Paul explained on Instagram that he hoped this wasn't the show's end. "The optimist in me is convinced it's not the end of Schmigadoon ... and maybe it's even a happy beginning," his statement read in part. Time will tell, but as of this moment, it looks like "Schmigadoon!" will remain one of 2024's more startling losses.

"The Flight Attendant" is a rare case where the star, not the network, dictated the end of a show while the network yearned for more. While sources working at Max said they were hoping for a third season of the surrealistic dark dramedy, the unspoken truth was that series star Kaley Cuoco felt her character's story arc had been completed with two seasons and had no desire to sign on for more of the show.

"I always envisioned ['The Flight Attendant'] as a limited series and thanks to an incredible creative team, we were able to deliver two thrilling seasons," Cuoco said in a press statement (via TVLine). "Personally, playing Cassie has been a dream come true and I am so grateful for everyone who played a part in bringing this extremely original series to life."

The series centered on wild girl flight attendant Cassie Bowden (Cuoco), whose drunken night out connects her to a high-level crime. By the time Season 2 rolls around, she has her spying bona fides in place and is working as a double-agent. Cassie must ultimately conquer her own externalized self-doubt to become the best spy she can be, and that is what she does — which is, perhaps, what makes a third season of the show a moot point.

"Minx" is one of a number of shows that managed to survive cancellation by switching networks, only to end up being knocked off by its second home. The period comedy found homes on Max and then on Starz, but neither seemed right for the smart, feminist series. It's shocking that Starz axed the show without giving it more of a test run, but two seasons in, it joined the skin mags central to its identity as a part of America's cultural past.

The series centered around Joyce Prigger (Ophelia Lovibond), a young collegiate who sets her eyes on starting an adult magazine for women. As she journeys through the underbelly of Los Angeles' pornographic underworld, she makes the acquaintance of Doug Renetti (Jake Johnson), who might just make all of her dreams come true. But outside ambitions and forces might turn her dreams into a nightmare.

At least one of the show's executive producers thought that a potential Season 3 might have happened, with Paul Feig saying that he hoped to bring in Doug's ex-wife and Joyce's mother as characters. Unfortunately, it looks like those developments will be left to the viewer's imaginations permanently. 

This might just be the most surprising cancellation of the 2023-2024 season. "Our Flag Means Death" explored the fictionalized adventures of real-life pirates Steed Bonnet (Rhys Darby) and Edward Teach — otherwise known as Blackbeard (Taika Waititi). Steed and Ed slowly begin to fall into star-crossed love while Steed tries to make a go of it as a gentleman pirate aboard the Revenge, along with a motley crew of sailors. 

HBO never cited a reason  for the show's cancellation. Critics were equally baffled by the choice, with series creator David Jenkins admitting that the way Season 2 of "Our Flag Means Death" ends — with Steed and Ed settling into a ramshackle house on an island to set up housekeeping together — wasn't the intended conclusion, with the show always meant to run three seasons. 

Inflamed by those comments, the show's fanbase rallied around it, trying to entice HBO — and then any other streamer with an open slot on its schedule — to give the action-dramedy another chance. The #SaveOurFlagMeansDeath movement pooled its money to do a number of large-scale, attention-grabbing things, including a billboard in Times Square and hiring a plane to fly over Los Angeles with a banner requesting the show be saved. The campaign continues in its small way as of press time, with fans not giving up on getting the show a new home. With Jenkins keeping that door open, anything seems possible.

"NCIS: Hawai'i" was an unusual part of the massive "NCIS" universe, in that it was a solid ratings success and also had a cult following thanks to its completely-different-from-the-rest-of-its-franchise leads. Not only did it feature the "NCIS" world's first female lead, Jane Tennant (Vanessa Lachey), but it had two lesbian main cast members, Lucy Tara (Yasmine Al-Bustami) and Kate Whistler (Tori Anderson). 

Fans plugged into both the Kate and Lucy romance and Jane's complicated backstory, and when "NCIS: Los Angeles" refugee Sam Hanna (LL Cool J) joined the team, the chemistry seemed to solidify. Which was why audiences were stunned when CBS canceled the show in spite of its solid ratings, citing budget versus ratings concerns and a desire to freshen up the network's line-up.

CBS revamped Monday night's schedule by greenlighting a Leroy Jethro Gibbs (Austin Stowell) prequel called "NCIS: Origins." Fans of "Hawai'i" were less than enthused, insisting that the network had acted out of bias even though CBS claimed that it tried to save the series. They vowed a boycott, and it seems to be working. "NCIS: Origins" has routinely gotten lower ratings in the Nielsens than "NCIS: Hawai'i." While the network can point to the fact that "Origins" is up against "Monday Night Football" every week, if viewership don't tick up, "Hawai'i" might have the last laugh.

Once upon a time, thousands of people tuned in every week for a fresh episode of "CSI" or one of its many spin-offs. Times have apparently changed, as "CSI: Vegas" has joined its brethren in the cancelation pile after three seasons. That's pretty shocking, and it means the franchise — which thrived throughout the '00's and early '10's — no longer has a prime time presence on CBS. Even worse, the eye network cited a lack of space on its schedule as the reason why it wouldn't be coming back.

"CSI: Vegas" had a revolving cast featuring plenty of old mainstays from the original series meeting in a Las Vegas crime lab. Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox) and Gil Grissom (William Petersen) anchored Season 1, while Marg Helgenberger's Catherine Willows headed up Seasons 2 and 3. It featured the franchise's typical mix of macabrely brutal crimes and pathology picture humor, with plenty of gore to spare. Naturally, there's no telling when and if CBS will bring the franchise back to life, and if we'll ever see this particular mix of characters again, but perhaps a big reunion might be in the cards for this franchise yet.

While some viewers might have claimed that "The Acolyte" was doomed to die due to its casting or writing or the notorious amount of fan backlash it accrued, it's still pretty stunning that the show was canceled after its first season. A "Star Wars" pedigree project heavily pushed by Disney+ when it launched, its short shelf life was still somewhat surprising. It got a fair amount of critical praise upon its release, climbing to a 78% approval score on Rotten Tomatoes, and even did well enough to become Disney+'s highest-watched premiere before sliding up and down the platform's top 10 ranking. 

The series was all about twin padawans named Osha and Mae (both played by Amandla Stenberg), who are separated by a tragic fire in their youth. While Mae has disappeared, Osha has failed to become a Jedi due to her temper and has avoided the order ever since. Then Mae resurfaces as a killer, forcing Osha to act as Sol (Lee Jung-jae), an ex-Jedi Master, surfaces to investigate the crime. Also arriving on the scene is Quimir (Manny Jacinto), a mysterious man who may know more than he lets on about the twins' pasts. 

As any "Star Wars" fan knows, even the most obscure parts of "Star Wars" history has and can be recycled, reused and deconstructed in future projects. It may take a few lightyears, but perhaps someday "The Acolyte" will see a reappreciation of its own. Hated and loved by different segments of the audience, it ripped "Star Wars" fans apart and did anything but bring peace to the Force.

It's a formula that seemed destined for success. "Halo" was based on a popular video game series, and it sported slick, ready-for-TV graphics that were as sharp as the images in the game. With series based on games like "The Last of Us" and "Fallout" making big waves, why not try to build a story around the adventures of Master Chief? It seemed to be working, as audiences tuned in enough to earn the show a renewal. But the Paramount+ version of "Halo" only lasted for two seasons before the curtain fell, leaving fans wondering what had gone wrong and surprised that the show had met its maker. It was speculated that the show's budget was the reason; all of those snazzy visuals apparently came at a price.

Just like the game, the show was about Master Chief John-117 (Pablo Schreiber) a super soldier who happens to be part of a specialized and sanctified group, the Spartans. They and all of humanity are in a fight with a wicked race of aliens, desperately battling it out with them to keep the human race alive. Since the show's producers vowed to shop "Halo" around, perhaps this won't be the end of those far-out adventures.  

Plenty of popular older sitcoms have seen successful revivals, with "The Conners," "Frasier," and "Night Court" among the most successful continuations. "That '90s Show" seemed to initially follow in those illustrious footsteps, scoring a renewal after its first season. But Netflix canned the sitcom after a Season 2 that did poor streaming numbers — and was barely promoted by the platform. 

The lack of advertising surprised and dismayed new fans, who have refused to give up and hope a new network — perhaps Fox, home of the original "That '70s Show" — might pick it up. Even if some of them thought "That '90s Show" was missing one thing — a properly 1990s feeling — they didn't want it to be canceled. The cast also seemed pretty stunned by the situation, flocking to Kurtwood Smith's Instagram to praise each other's work and offer each other comfort.

"That '90s Show" picks up life in Point Place a decade and a half after the end of "That '70s Show." In 1995, Eric (Topher Grace) and Donna Forman (Laura Prepon) have a teenage daughter named Leia (Callie Haverda). Leia begins spending her summers with Grandpa Red (Smith) and Grandma Kitty (Debra Jo Rupp), making friends and experiencing her first big heartbreaks, rebellions and romances. Other "That '70s Show" characters appear, including Jackie Burkhart (Mila Kunis) and Michael Kelso (Ashton Kutcher) — whose son, Jay (Mace Coronel), becomes Leia's crush. Smith has vowed that the series will be shopped around – so time will tell if the passage of time will be good to his gaggle of teens.

It was a horror sensation that won praise from both the sizeable "Chucky" fandom and the horror community at large, but "Chucky" became a victim of programming changes at SyFy. Even worse, the network dragged out its decision about "Chucky" for months, leaving the whole production on tenterhooks and fans campaigning to keep the series alive. That made its cancellation after three seasons shocking, especially because it was among the top 10 original scripted dramas on cable when it was scrapped. 

"Chucky" continued the misadventures of serial killer Charles Lee Ray (Brad Dourif) — who inhabits the title doll — and his paramour, Tiffany Valentine (Jennifer Tilly). Chucky encounters Jake Wheeler (Zackary Arthur), a troubled young teenager, and tries to mold him into a killer while hoping to take over his body. Jake finds unexpected help in Lexy Cross (Alyvia Alyn Lind), who initially bullies him, and his crush, Devon Evans (Björgvin Arnarson). A titanic struggle between Chucky's enemies and allies begins, with mutually assured destruction the only possible outcome.

Fans of the show have at least been assured some sort of closure, as creator Don Mancini has announced that there will be another "Child's Play" film to help tie up the loose ends left behind by "Chucky." It just goes to show that some carrot-headed killer dolls will never die.

It was a bad year for cult and fantasy series — in addition to "Our Flag Means Death" and "Kaos," "Dead Boy Detectives" met its end after a single season on Netflix. The series — based on a popular set of DC comic books from Neil Gaiman and Matt Wagner — had a built-in audience that immediately rallied to the show's side. Its strong ties to the successful "Sandman" series and comics also seemed to make the show impervious to cancellation, a notion which proved untrue.

The show is all about Edwin Payne (George Rexstrew) and Charles Rowland (Jayden Revri), two young men who meet in on their way to the hereafter and vow to fight crime together. Edwin is already a detective when he's accidentally pulled into hell, while Charles suffers a sadder, uglier death due to the actions of his classmates. Instead of going into the great beyond, they stay on earth and team up with a medium (Kassius Nelson) and her associates. 

While "Dead Boy Detectives" pulled in fairly decent ratings, it apparently didn't accrue the kind of numbers the infamously-picky Netflix was looking for. Its audience hasn't given up on finding it a fresh home no matter what the numbers say, but despite its strong critical acclaim and cult audience, we don't see this show rising from the grave.

Another example of how difficult it was to get a fantasy series off the ground during the 2023-2024 season, Prime Video's "My Lady Jane" combined the real-life tragedy of Lady Jane Grey (Emily Bader) with a fantasy tale involving shape-shifting humans and the social castes they inspire. The show developed a cult following on TikTok, where fans were outraged when the show was shelved. Among those fighting for the series to get a second season? George R.R. Martin himself, who added to the public outcry on his blog.

The series follows Jane as she enters into a political marriage with Lord Guildford Dudley (Edward Bluemel). Standing behind King Edward VI (Jordan Peters) in the line of succession, she is shocked to learn that Dudley is an Ethian — an oppressed class of human being who can shift into animal form. But he can't control the shift between human and horse form and is looking to do so. 

Ethians and normal humans are not supposed to mix, and if anyone finds out Dudley's secret there will be an execution. Unfortunately for the leads, other powers are aligned against them — including Ethian forces who want to reclaim the throne. Only time will tell if audiences will ever get to find out how that works out for Jane and Dudley.