Futurama is coming to an end… Again. EW.com has revealed that Comedy Central is not renewing the series and that the episodes airing this summer on June 19 – the second half of Season 7 -- will be the final ones, with the finale airing on September 4th.
Futurama of course had has a long, strange ride. It began on FOX in 1999 and was cancelled in 2003. It then returned as four straight-to-DVD movies, which also were edited into episodes shown on Comedy Central. And then Comedy Central ordered brand new episodes, which began airing in 2010.
Given the fact that they felt the show was over when FOX cancelled it and once again when they completed the DVD movies, co-creator David X. Cohen said Comedy Central’s decision wasn’t a shock, particularly since they were surprised when the cable channel ordered 26 additional episodes two years ago after the first 26 they ordered. He tells EW, “I felt like we were already in the bonus round on these last couple of seasons, so I can’t say I was devastated by the news. It was what I had expected two years earlier. At this point I keep a suitcase by my office door so I can be cancelled at a moment’s notice.”
While the producers say they are exploring options for yet another home for Futurama, there are no serious talks occurring with another network at the moment. Co-creator Matt Groening tells EW, “We’ve been in this situation before and it’s tempting when you’re doing episodes that are as good or better than anything you’ve ever done to continue doing it. We’re catching our breath and seeing what the fans have to say. The experience of this show has been so much fun from the very beginning to now — everybody is so happy to work on this show — that it’d be a shame if we all went our separate ways… We would love to continue. We have many more stories to tell. But if we don’t, this is a really great way to go out… I think these episodes are the best ones we’ve ever done.”
Describing this as “the natural end” for Futurama, Comedy Central’s Dave Bernath says, “That’s a helluva run that few shows achieve, and especially given the fact that it came back to life, it’s really an amazing story,” he says. “I’m more thankful and feel a sense of gratitude toward the whole process — and that we found a way to keep going for 52 more episodes — than I really am even thinking about the ending. It’s a blessing that it came back and lasted so long.”
EW notes that Futurama has declined in viewers since it returned on Comedy Central, averaging 2.6 million viewers in 2010, 2.3 million in 2011, and 1.7 million in 2012. When it finishes its run on Comedy Central this summer, Futurama will have aired 140 episodes.
http://www.ign.com/a...0cbbcba3a000007
Well this is so sudden and unexpected. I thought it was doing quite well on Comedy Central, .. I'm sad to see it go again. 140 episode though is a lot, that's more than most shows see.
