Arrested Development Cancelled!

[Your Mom]

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The Camdens will bid farewell to viewers in May when the WB Network's top-rated family drama "7th Heaven" ends its run after 10 seasons in what sources said was largely a cost-cutting move.

The Bluth clan of Fox's ratings-challenged "Arrested Development" is also headed for the exit after Fox cut the third-season order on the Emmy-winning comedy to 13 episodes.

Also getting the ax at Fox is "Arrested's" companion on Monday, the freshman comedy "Kitchen Confidential," whose order will not be extended beyond the initial 13 episodes.

"7th Heaven," whose debut on August 26, 1996, marked the first-ever Monday broadcast of the then-fledging WB Network, will bow out as the longest-running family drama on television.

After 10 seasons, the show is still a top draw for WB, averaging 5.1 million viewers this season to date. Creatively, the show also will go out in style, creator Brenda Hampton said.

"I think this is the best season we've ever had, and we're planning a very exciting and heartwarming conclusion to the series," she said. "On the show, we talk about choosing your feelings, and we chose to feel happy and blessed to have been on the air for so long."

There is talk about a potential "7th Heaven" spinoff, but Hampton admits that would be hard to do.

"('7th Heaven') is a family show," she said. "I think the success of the show is that the family is intact with the mom, the dad and the children, so it is a very difficult show to spin off."

Sources indicated that the reasons to take "7th Heaven" off the air were primarily financial. As series age, they get more and more expensive, with the price tag especially high for a show with a large cast like "7th Heaven." The cancellation of the long-running series also comes during a process of extensive cost-cutting across all Warner Bros. divisions.

As for the demise of "Arrested," it comes just as the acclaimed comedy came back this week after a hiatus to make room for Fox's baseball coverage. The two back-to-back episodes averaged a paltry 4 million viewers Monday, sending Fox to fifth place in the 8 p.m. hour and putting a dent on the ratings of its lead-out, the rookie drama "Prison Break."

There is a possibility that the show will be shopped around, but its high cost is expected to be prohibitive for a cable network.

Fox said Thursday that it will pull "Arrested Development" and "Kitchen Confidential" off the schedule for the remaining three Mondays of the November sweep, replacing them with a rerun of the previous episode of "Prison Break" leading into an original episode of the serialized drama.

"Arrested" and "Kitchen" are set to return to their time slots with original episodes December 5, following the fall finale of "Prison Break" on November 28.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

This sucks! I really liked Arrested Development That Kitchen show never really got a fair shot either

[Ananas]

It sucks that both shows are ending, but at this point no one can blame it on FOX (the usual knee jerk reaction in such situations). FOX stuck by AD in two consecutive years when the numbers just didn't work, and despite two consecutive Emmy windfalls and plenty of promotion, the numbers just didn't go up. I'd also suggest that Kitchen Confidential got a more than fair shot, paired in between the network's Emmy golden child and one of it's hottest new show. It didn't even hold a good portion of AD's tiny audience. Both shows came in up against the wall anyways, because their timeslot goes to House in January, and 24 moves to the 9pm slot.

[Toe]

I loved Arrested Development. I own Season 1 and 2 on DVD. And this blows huge chunks. I don't see why more people didn't watch this show, as to me, it is the funniest show on TV at the moment.

[EWFan2004]

If Fox was smart with AD they would have it on Tuesday or Thursday nights.

[apsham]

Fuck Fox. That is all.

[Fitzy]

Both shows came in up against the wall anyways, because their timeslot goes to House in January, and 24 moves to the 9pm slot.

[Guest Grapehead]

Just started watching the DVDs of AD, and I must say it's one of the best things I've seen Fox put out in quite some time.

[naiwf]

If Fox was smart with AD they would have it on Tuesday or Thursday nights.

[Ananas]

If Fox was smart with AD they would have it on Tuesday or Thursday nights.

[EWFan2004]

If Fox was smart with AD they would have it on Tuesday or Thursday nights.

You do realize that AD would have had an even smaller chance at competing on those two nights right?

On Tuesdays, the competition would be

CBS: NCIS (#7 in the rankings) or The Amazing Race

NBC: The Biggest Loser or My Name is Earl & The Office

ABC: According to Jim & Rodney or Commander in Chief (T # 8 this year)

---------

On Thursdays they would have been up against. . .

CBS - Survivor (T #8 this season) or CSI (the top rated show on TV)

NBC: Joey/ Will & Grace or The Apprentice

ABC: Alias or Night Stalker

And that doesn't even include the minor network shows like Everybody Hates Chris, Smallville or Everwood.

Edited November 11, 2005 by EWFan2004

[naiwf]

But still it shows that Fox would care about a show and put agianst the competion.

Edited November 11, 2005 by naiwf

[Your Mom]

But still it shows that Fox would care about a show and put agianst the competion.

If AD couldn't get a decent audience on one of the weakest nights of TV (only Friday and Saturday are probably as bad or worse), what sense would it make to put it up against some of the best/most watched shows on network TV on the two days that they all bring out the heavy hitters? Fox showed they cared about the show by doing everything they could to help it thrive, but it didn't. Any other show on Fox with such excellent critical reviews, but abysmal ratings would have been cancelled long ago, so be thankful they didn't pull a John Doe and end the show just as it was getting good, or bench it after three weeks like they did Wonderfalls when it wasn't the network savior that they though it would be.

I miss John Doe and Wonderfalls. You are just like this magical misery bringer huh?

[naiwf]

I miss John Doe and Wonderfalls. You are just like this magical misery bringer huh?

[Toe]

I don't remember seeing FOX advertise the show too much. I remember seeing a few commercials for the season 2 DVD, but not for the actual show. I only found out it was on Mondays at 8 after my friend called me and sayed he was flipping through channels and saw it on. When it was on Sundays, I only caught the last half of the season for the same reason. I didn't even know that the season had started! I only saw the last three episodes of the first season, and that was the only reason why I became a fan - those three episodes made me buy the DVD.

I am really sad that Arrested Development is going to be gone from TV. Hopefully, I will be able to watch the last couple of episodes.

[Ananas]

Well in fairness, you wouldn't be getting any of the American broadcasts of FOX in primetime since in Canada whenever a Canadian network gets the broadcast rights to a show, they show the Canadian broadcast on both channels. FOX did make an attempt to boost the ratings by placing the show's stars all over the late night map, (last year) giving it the coveted post-Simpsons slot and this year letting it lead off an evening of programming. The audience wasn't there, it's as simple as that.

[Yitzy]

The thing that really irks me is that while they cancel great shows like Arrested Development and Kitchen Confidential (and The Critic ) they keep those shitty reality TV shows and crappy shows like "Stacked" that I'm sure NOBODY watches.

I say, we burn down Fox

[gunnar hendershow]

Fox cancels another good show.

Earth continues to rotate on its axis.

See, at least the world isn't coming to an end. Look at the positives of Arrested's cancellation.

[Ananas]

The thing that really irks me is that while they cancel great shows like Arrested Development and Kitchen Confidential (and The Critic ) they keep those shitty reality TV shows and crappy shows like "Stacked" that I'm sure NOBODY watches.

[tristy]

It's the same reason Angel got cancelled, I believe. Great writing, great acting, but it just wasn't drawing enough people in.

It's a shame, but the fans will eventually get over it. I got over the Angel cancellation some time ago.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

Shame, Arrested Development is quite funny...Good to watch at midnight which is the time it airs in the UK...

I guess I liked it cos it seemed to share some quirks of comedy with British comedy.