CBS Canceled A Lot Of Shows This Spring That Upset Fans (And Casts). Why It Was Different When Evil Ended This Week
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As we prepare for the 2024 TV schedule to kick back into high gear with the return of fall shows, many of us are still mourning the series that were canceled or ended earlier this year. This includes thinking about the many CBS and Paramount+ projects we lost, like NCIS: Hawai’i, So Help Me Todd and Evil. However, while those first two series meeting their ends deeply upset both fans and casts, Evil has a different perspective on it all.
Throughout the spring, CBS cut some major shows that had all been around for a handful of seasons. Notably, the cancellations of NCIS: Hawai’i, So Help Me Todd and CSI: Vegas hit hard. Along with them, the CBS-turned-Paramount+ series Evil was axed after four seasons in February. However, it got an order of four bonus episodes too, meaning, they had the luxury of planning an end. With that in mind, the show’s creator, Michelle King, told Deadline that while they’re sad the series ended, they’re proud of how they went out:
In terms of the emotion of it. I think I certainly had some of the sadness that Robert’s describing. But, on top of that, I felt proud of the show and grateful that we did get these last four episodes to land the plane.
The series finale of Evil became available to those with a Parmount+ subscription on August 22, meaning it aired almost exactly six months after news of its cancellation broke. So, the cast and creatives knew it was the end, and that these four episodes would be the show’s conclusion.
Most of the time, when a show gets the news that it's ending before it wants to, it doesn’t have time to plan a conclusion. Typically, they get canceled after a season is filmed and has been airing, which is what happened to both NCIS: Hawai'i and So Help Me Todd, or right after a show finishes its season. King touched on that point, explaining:
Yes, because plenty of series just cut off, and are not allowed to resolve in a way that’s satisfying. And I was grateful that we did and feel good about the result.
Read More About Evil
→ Evil Is Ending With Season 4, But Turns Out The Showrunners Had A Much Different Plan
→ Why An Evil Star Thinks It’s A ‘No-Brainer’ The Show Should Be Saved From Cancelation At Paramount+
While the cancellation was no doubt sad, and King addressed that, it seems rare that “grateful” is a term that can be used when it comes to a series ending before it really wants to.
When So Help Me Todd was canceled, a fan campaign immediately started, and the primary emotions revolving around the news were anger and sadness. Meanwhile, for NCIS: Hawai’i, its star Vanessa Lachey was “blindsided” by the news that her series was ending. Also, both fans and the cast were sad about the series coming to a close, especially since their series finale ended on a frustrating cliffhanger.
Evil got to go out on its own terms, even though they didn’t decide to end their show. Michelle King explained that they were happy that they got to give the show a “proper ending,” as she said:
Well, it did make sense to us of wanting to give satisfying closure to the story. Which, to my mind, means respecting the characters and respecting the audience, but also not feeling like we want to see people die, characters die, you know? We wanted to give it a proper ending without necessarily the finality of death.
While the series’ creator was clear that this ending was sad and emotional, it’s worth celebrating the fact that they got to finish this show how they wanted to. Obviously, it’d be great if it moved forward and got another season, however, all things considered, the way they closed out was great.
No matter what the circumstances, cancellation sucks. However, the blow is less severe when you have time to plan for it and craft the ending you want. Evil got to do that, and they were able to leave the show on the note they wanted. So, it’s understandable why their series getting axed is being taken differently than other shows that were canceled by CBS and/or Paramount+.
