NBC Cancels ‘A.D.,’ ‘Hannibal’ After Ratings Plummet, Will They Continue Elsewhere?
It is without question that NBC pushed the proverbial envelope on the TV series Hannibal.
The storyline expands on the sociopathic serial killer Hannibal Lector originally played by Anthony Hopkins. In the critically acclaimed series, Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen played the starring role.
While he had big shoes to fill in taking a role made iconic by Hopkins, the Scandinavian did an admirable job in adding grace and finesse to the upscale and educated cannibal. Still, audiences were in no mood to watch the “feast of the week” storyline.
Hannibal never garnered the strong ratings the network had anticipated, reports the Huff Post.
The graphic violence was at times enough to give Showtime’s Dexter character a weak stomach. Despite being only three episodes into season three, the network officially canceled the series. It will continue to play out through the remainder of the summer.
There is always the possibility that the show may return for a special episode or even have a chance at a fourth season. One network executive expressed a desire to continue the show on another platform. Generally speaking, that tends to be code word for Netflix or Amazon.
That said, there is no indication that will occur at this time. Most recently, Netflix picked up Longmire for a fourth season after A&E canceled the show. However, Longmire had strong ratings just not within the network’s target demographic. That is not the case with the Hannibal series.
NBC has also canceled “A.D.: The Bible Continues” after one season.
According to reports, producers Mark Burnett and Roma Downey plan to return to the greatest story ever told on their nascent digital channel.
“A.D” averaged about 6.5 million viewers and a 1.o in adults 18-49 in live-plus-7 Nielsen ratings across its 12-episode run, which ended June 21. The series was designed to pick up where Burnett and Downey’s blockbuster 2013 miniseries “The Bible” left off and chronicle stories from the formative years of Christianity.
