Why was ‘Futurama’ cancelled?

All good things must come to an end, as they say, and the cult animated sci-fi classic Futurama is no exception. With a cancellation as untraditional as the show’s subject matter, the story of a 20th century pizza delivery dude waking up in the distant future never stood a chance.

Wait, it’s back, you say? On Hulu? In 2023?

Okay, Futurama isn’t cancelled ⏤ not anymore, that is. It was legitimately cancelled back in the day, not once, but twice. With its last episode airing all the way back in 2013, the show will have been off the air for nearly a decade by the time fans are taken back to the future. Plagued by production woes and unsupportive Fox executives, the show has a complicated past. Here’s a quick rundown of why Futurama was initially pulled from the air.

Created by The Simpsons mastermind Matt Groening in collaboration with writer David X. Cohen, Futurama depicts the 31st century in all of its interesting absurdity. For whatever reason, though, the powers at Fox during the late ’90s and early 2000s were not as interested.

Running on Fox from 1999 until 2003, and then again on Comedy Central from 2010 to 2013, Futurama became a bit of an oddity. During its tenure on Fox, the show constantly shifted time slots. These changes in airtime not only alienated fans, but also pulled viewership way down. 

In short, nobody knew when the show was going to air. This made it increasingly hard to tune in, and many casual viewers lost interest. Fox let Futurama slip into obscurity. It didn’t technically cancel the series, but the network held onto previously purchased episodes and simply chose to stop purchasing more.

It seemed clear that Fox just didn’t like the show for whatever reason. Some speculate that the network was weary of having another Simpsons competitor, while others say that it had a rocky relationship with Matt Groening. For whatever reason, the animated adventures just didn’t have the same draw as other properties airing around the same time.

Then Comedy Central picked up the property and made plans to revive Futurama outright. Beginning with four straight-to-DVD movies, those stories (considered to be the 5th season) gained enough traction for the series to be picked up full time. 

A deal was struck, and Comedy Central ran Futurama on air for a 6th and final 7th season. Alas, the show was cancelled again by those who never understood its true genius. It seemed like the adventures of Fry, Bender, Leela, Amy, Zoidberg, and so many other iconic characters had truly come to an end. Until now, that is.

That’s right ⏤ they’re “back, baby.” With the recent announcements of Hulu’s acquisition of the show, Futurama heads to streaming with 20 beautiful episodes beginning in 2023. All we can say is, “Shut up and take my money!”