‘Forever’ Canceled: ABC Cancels ‘Forever,’ ‘The Taste’ In Bold Move
Forever, canceled by ABC late Thursday, May 7, is just one of the shows getting the ax. ABC canceled Forever, The Taste, Cristela, and Resurrection in a move that seemed to clear the decks for the network. As reported by EW.com, “the moves come amid a frantic series of verdicts on new and returning shows made by the network.” Though the ratings of these shows might be good for other networks, they just weren’t the level of viewers that ABC was looking to draw. EW.com reported the average number of viewers for each of the three dramas.
“The three scripted titles were modestly rated by ABC standards, with Forever delivering about 7.9 million viewers including DVR playback, Cristela bringing in 6.1 million, and Resurrection earning 6.9 million.”
It might seem a bit surprising to fans of Forever, that the show was bringing in about eight million viewers a week and still got canceled by ABC. It becomes a bit more explanatory when taking a look at what ABC has ordered for the 2015-16 television season. An earlier report from EW.com revealed that six new shows have been ordered, and they are all going to be dramas. Even less surprising is that one of them is created by Shonda Rhimes, who is the mind behind hit shows like Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal. Her new show is titled The Catch, and it received a quick synopsis by EW.com writer Natalie Abrams.
“Rhimes’ The Catch is a new thriller centered on the successful Alice Martin (Mirelle Enos). She’s a fraud investigator who’s about to be the victim of fraud by her fiancé (Damon Dayoub). Between her cases, she is determined to find him before it ruins her career. Jennifer Schuur will write and executive-produce with Rhimes, Betsy Beers, and Julie Anne Robinson. Jacky Ido, Jay Hayden, Elvy Yost, Alimi Ballard, Rose Rollins and Bethany Joy Lenz will also star.”
Forever starred Ioan Gruffudd, Alana De La Garza, and Judd Hirsch, with 22 episodes that aired on ABC. The final episode aired on May 5, but it underscored how far the viewer numbers had fallen since the series premiere on Sept. 22. That first episode drew an estimated 8.26 million viewers live, and then another 3.58 million viewers from the DVR numbers. The show regularly drew really good DVR numbers, with just over three million people recording and watching it later every week. The problem, though, was that by episode No. 22, the live viewers were down to just an estimated 4.13 million, showing advertisers it might not be a wise investment.
As previously reported on the Inquisitr, Shonda Rhimes has a long-standing contract with ABC now, and it is clear that she will continue pumping out new shows for the network. This spelled doom for shows like Forever, The Taste, and Resurrection, especially since they don’t bring in the viewership numbers that Rhimes’ programs have in the past.
[Image Source: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images]
