A.P. Bio creator Mike O’Brien announced the show’s cancellation late on Friday.
I’m intensely sad to announce that AP Bio will be ending after this season. This has been my favorite project of my life and that’s because of the amazing writers, cast and crew. As most canceled shows probably feel, I think we were just hitting our stride and everyone was still
— Mike O’Brien (@MikeOBrienXOXO) May 25, 2019
loving the work, so this is very hard. We have 4 left to air and they’re 4 of my favorites. Plus 22 others are on Hulu (for now) and https://t.co/wUeZQNY5WZ. Please check them out and tell a friend about the show and tell the people who worked on it that they did a good job!
— Mike O’Brien (@MikeOBrienXOXO) May 25, 2019
The news comes as little surprise given the show dropped almost 40% in the demo this season, making it the second least-watched NBC comedy just ahead of Abby’s. It wasn’t a great retainer of its Superstore lead-in and didn’t generate much in the way of buzz or non-linear viewing, so there wasn’t a whole lot going for it aside from what belief NBC had in the creative. This was compounded by the network opting to delay making a decision on the show before upfronts, which meant that they were trying to duck what bad press they’d get for an A.P. Bio cancellation.
From O’Brien (Saturday Night Live), A.P. Bio followed disgraced Ivy League professor Jack Griffin (Glenn Howerton) as he lost out on his dream job and found himself forced to teach high school Advanced Placement Biology in his hometown of Toledo, Ohio.
In addition to Howerton, A.P. Bio starred Lyric Lewis, Paula Pell, Patton Oswalt, Mary Sohn, and Jean Villepique.
The decision on A.P. Bio cuts the list of NBC shows in limbo down to Abby’s, The Enemy Within, and The Village, none of which are expected to continue.
The series finale of A.P. Bio is set to air next month on NBC.
