NBC has quietly pulled action drama Taken from the schedule, effectively immediately. In its place this coming Friday will be Dateline: Simply Diabolical, an episode that focuses on a cyber-revenge case that lands a young woman in jail. Dateline: Deadly Circumstances, about the mysterious murder of a Tennessee woman, will air at 10:00 as originally scheduled.
While the move itself isn’t a surprise, given that Taken has done poorly since returning for its retooled, delayed second season, the fact that NBC let the show air 11 episodes of its order is. The show’s renewal was primarily based on the low production cost combined with strong international interest given the ties to the film series, but where May sweeps is just around the corner, NBC couldn’t leave the show where it was. Something similar happened last season when DC Comics comedy Powerless was pulled in late April so as to help the network’s average during May sweeps.
The remaining five episodes of Taken are set to air beginning Saturday, May 26th. The series is one of just two projects to be pulled from the schedule this season, joining CBS fall comedy Me, Myself & I.
Based on the film series of the same name and adapted for television by Alexander Carey (The Blacklist), Taken follows former Green Beret Bryan Mills (Clive Standen) as he uses his work as a special intelligence operative to overcome a personal tragedy and exact revenge.
In addition to Standen, Taken starred Jennifer Beals (The L Word), Adam Goldberg (The Jim Gaffigan Show), and Jessica Camacho (Sleepy Hollow).
You can take a look at the trailer for Dateline: Deadly Circumstances below.
