Most Surprising TV Show Cancellations of 2025, From Netflix to CBS
In some cases, fans are rallying to save the shows. The unexpected cancellations came for a variety of reasons, including financial.
Here are some of the most surprising TV show cancellations of 2025:The Recruit's cancellation by Netflix surprised fans. The Mirror called the cancellation of The Recruit "among the most shocking cancellations" of 2025, saying that it "quickly earned a dedicated following."
According to The Mirror, many fans were also disappointed when Netflix cut the show Territory after just one season.
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Two FBI shows being cancelled by CBS surprised some observers. According to CinemaBlend, the shows "were going strong on CBS" going into 2025. Thus, according to CinemBlend, "it came as quite a surprise" when CBS cancelled FBI: Most Wanted and FBI: International.Then there's the Disney+ original Andor, which was cancelled even though it was Emmy-award nominated. According to People, Andor was originally supposed to be five seasons, but the "scale" of the show proved difficult to continue. On top of it, Disney+ cancelled a show that was soaring in the ratings, The Extraordinary.NBC cancelling Found was labeled a "surprise cancellation" by Collider, which reported that fans were rallying to try to save it.The Neighborhood's cancellation was called a "surprise" by Us Weekly. The show was cancelled by CBS.
'On this particular show, we had to go through a number of adversities that were different from just a TV show,' Cedric the Entertainer told Us.Hulu also surprised some fans when it cancelled the adult animation series Solar Opposites.The Equalizer being cancelled by CBS surprised fans, according to GeekSided. It was believed that CBS was "in negotiations" to bring back the show - until it wasn't.According to GeekSided, fans were shocked when Fox decided not to renew its new show, Rescue HI-Surf. The show was selected as the winner of TVLine's annual Save Our Show poll. According to GeekSided, "Heading into the 2024-25 season, it was clear Fox was betting big on Rescue HI-Surf." But then that changed.The Irrational had the highest ratings of the five shows that NBC cancelled in May, but that didn't save the show. Actress Karen David wrote on Instagram, 'I've been at this long enough to know that this is all part of the journey and whether we like it or not, great shows are not immune to cancellation."S.W.A.T. was cancelled before, but it was saved by fans, so the show returned. However, then CBS announced that the show was ending in May after eight seasons, according to Good Housekeeping.
Actor Shemar Moore voiced his disappointment on Instagram, saying in a video in March, "I said I wasn't going to do this, but I can't help it. I'm gonna do it because it's who I am. It's how my mama raised me. Own your dignity, tell the truth. She can't stand a liar, so I ain't lying, and I'm telling the truth. S.W.A.T., here we are, season eight, three weeks away from the finale, we are canceled again. It sucks. It's sad."According to What's on Netflix, Black Mirror Bandersnatch was "the most significant swing Netflix ever did with its interactive technology." So it's perhaps surprising that show is biting the dust.
There's "an active community on Discord is seeking to preserve the interactive technology," What's on Netflix reported, but the streaming giant removed the show on May 12.ABC cancelled The Conners, which was a spinoff of Roseanne.
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USA Today
12 minutes ago
- USA Today
e.l.f. Cosmetics, under fire for Matt Rife ad, says 'we missed the mark'
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Many fans quickly took issue with the inclusion of Rife, who has previously sparked controversy and backlash from women, particularly after a domestic violence joke he made in his debut Netflix special. Here's what to know about the latest incident involving e.l.f. Who is Matt Rife and why is he controversial? Rife, 29, gained widespread popularity in 2022 when videos of his stand-up comedy, specifically his crowd work, went viral on TikTok. He had previously appeared in a few small roles on reality and traditional television, making it to the semifinals of the comedy competition show "Bring the Funny" in 2019. Rife had ruffled some feathers with his quips over the years, but the real backlash came with the release of his Netflix special "Natural Selection" in November 2023. The special, which received mixed reviews, was what Rife himself described as an attempt at appealing to a male audience after his rise to fame was largely attributed to female supporters. "And that's one thing that I wanted to tackle in this special was showing people that, like, despite what you think about me online, I don't pander my career to women," he said in an interview with Variety. "I would argue this special is way more for guys." Rife opened the special with a joke about domestic violence, telling a story about visiting a "ratchet" restaurant in Baltimore with his friend and noticing a female server had a black eye. As the story goes, the duo wondered why the establishment wouldn't keep the server in the kitchen to avoid customers seeing her injury. "Yeah, but I feel like if she could cook, she wouldn't have that black eye," he quipped. "I figure if we start the show with domestic violence, the rest of the show should be smooth sailing." Continued backlash Rife's response to subsequent backlash landed him in even deeper water when he posted a fake apology on his Instagram story. 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The post, which received more than 64k likes, was flooded with more than 6,000 comments, many of which were not satisfied with the veracity of the apology. "'Missed the mark' is a pretty loose way of saying 'we intentionally alienated our audience by hiring a man who torpedoed his career by alienating his audience,'" said one comment with more than 8,000 likes. "Are you seriously trying to add humour to your apology? Take down the original ads from all platforms. How tone deaf can you be?" said another. e.l.f. Beauty's Global Chief of Marketing Officer Kory Marchisotto told trade publication The Business of Beauty in an Aug. 14 interview that the brand was "surprised" by the poor reception. "Obviously we're very surprised,' said Marchisotto, who explained that they chose Rife because of the alignment between his TikTok followers and the brand's target audience. 'There is a big gap between our intention and how this missed the mark for some people." "We always aim to deliver positivity, and this one didn't. So we find ourselves in a position where, quite honestly, that doesn't feel good for us," she said. USA TODAY has reached out to e.l.f. and Rife for comment.
Geek Tyrant
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CNET
12 minutes ago
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