After a slew of renewals and series orders, ABC opted to cancel legal drama For Life and Black-ish spinoff Mixed-ish, each after two seasons.
For Life was the network’s lowest-rated scripted series in L+SD for 2020-21, but its solid digital performance means that Sony Pictures TV will attempt to shop it to other outlets. Among the places where the studio is expected to take the well-received series is Hulu, where For Life did well.
Lauded for its portrayal of inequality in the justice system, the series was one of the first broadcast scripted series to get back into production during the pandemic, which led to its planned midseason bow being moved forward.
With Black-ish headed into a final season and ABC enthralled by its Wonder Years reboot pilot, Mixed-ish ran out of scheduling real estate and landed on the wrong side of the bubble this season. Though the show was received positively upon its debut, its linear ratings have been soft and it didn’t have the buzz or the syndication deal to give it a boost like its parent show.
For Life and Mixed-ish are among five shows cancelled by ABC today, joining Kyra Sedgwick comedy Call Your Mother, veteran American Housewife, and Krista Vernoff drama Rebel.
ABC is set to unveil its fall 2021 schedule on Tuesday.
