Futurama Cancelled | Planet Express Shuts Down for the Last Time

Futurama Cancelled | Planet Express Shuts Down for the Last Time

News has just come forth that Comedy Central will not be renewing Futurama for an eighth season.  The animated sci-fi comedy, currently halfway through its seventh season, will be coming to an end on September 4.

The show’s final 13 episodes will start airing June 19 at 10pm.

But, it seems this moment was inevitable.  Futurama has been cancelled twice before, changed networks once, and suffered a steady decline in ratings since its reemergence in 2010; dropping from 2.6 to 1.7 million viewers in 2012.

Futurama was developed by Simpsons creator Matt Groening at the insistence of the Fox Network.  The series first aired on Fox in 1999, until poor timeslots and a lack of network support ended the show in 2003.

Talks began with Comedy Central to acquire syndication rights for the series.  The topic eventually shifted towards the creation of new episodes.

This lead to Futurama’s second run: four direct-to-DVD episodes which were released in 2007.  The following year, these DVD episodes were split into 16 TV-length segments and broadcast as season five.

With no talk of renewal, this once again appeared to be the end of the series.

But 2009 brought news that Comedy Central had once again ordered new episodes.  Season six hit screens in 2010/11 and the current, and possibly final, season started in 2012.

Series creator Matt Groening told EW.com that “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… everybody is so happy to work on this show… it’d be a shame if we all went our separate ways… We would love to continue”.

In a 2012 interview, John DiMaggio, the voice of Bender expressed a similar sentiment; “We’ve come back from the dead so many times. I just hope we get to do some more of these”.

Futurama has bounced back in the past, and may yet again have another run.  But with Futurama’s recent decline in ratings, season eight may still be a few years away.

What do you think?  Will Futurama return?   Will you miss the show?  What was your favorite moment?

Share your thoughts below!


Have A Question? Ask Jessica!

  • Jessica: Hi, I'm Jessica, the Consumer Press AI, can I help you with a consumer question?

Working... ...


Author Profile: Consumer Expert N. Edwards

Nic is a freelance writer who enjoys covering cool products, games and ideas. If there’s anything weird, interesting or new, it’s fair game.

Before starting as a writer, Nic has worked everywhere from bars to mine sites and post offices to airports. He likes to spend what time he can traveling and photographing, or at least wishing that he could ;).

Check out some pics here!

Retrieved Start Time: 
Retrieved End Time: