Amazon announced today that The Expanse has been picked up for a fifth season. The good news comes months ahead of Season 4, which has yet to debut at its new streaming home since the online giant revived it from cancellation last year.
The critically-acclaimed space opera started out on Syfy, where it aired its first three seasons between 2015 and 2018. After getting axed from the cable network, there was a substantial outcry from fans, resulting in a #SaveTheExpanse online campaign that included an online petition with over 130,000 signatures and a GoFundMe page which paid for an airplane banner that was flown over Amazon Studios in Santa Monica.
With Season 5 now confirmed, fans can look forward to plenty more of The Expanse over the next year or two. Look for Season 4 to premiere on December 13.
Hulu announced today that The Handmaid's Tale has been picked up for a fourth season. The good news was somewhat expected, as the book-based drama is still going strong in Season 3, maintaining its popularity and continuing to garner critical praise.
Based on the classic Margaret Atwood novel of the same name, The Handmaid's Tale takes place in a totalitarian society that was previously part of the United States. Elisabeth Moss plays Offred, one of the few remaining fertile women in the dystopia of Gilead. A handmaid in the commander's household, she is one of the caste of women who are forced into servitude in a desperate attempt to repopulate the world.
Look for Season 4 of The Handmaid's Tale in 2020. For now, the show's third season still has three episodes remaining until its August 14 finale.
Word is out that Designated Survivor has been cancelled once again - this time by Netflix. The move comes the month following the political drama's third season release, which ends up as the only one ordered by the streaming service after being revived last fall.
The Kiefer Sutherland-led series premiered in 2016 on ABC and was one of the network's best-performing new entries of that season, attracting a healthy audience and even picking up a Critics' Choice award. The initial interest didn't last long, though, as its numbers dipped in Season 2 after the main plot wrapped up. The decline in viewership resulted in its eventual cancellation.
Netflix stepped in and ordered a 10-episode third season of the show, which was its shortest outing by more than half. Still, fans got to see the story progress to follow President Kirkman's campaign for re-election. But the writing was on the wall that Season 3 would be the end after some key cast members started moving on to other projects.
Designated Survivor was Sutherland's first return as a lead in a TV series since his career-reviving role as Jack Bauer in Fox's 24 franchise. In the show he plays a Cabinet member who is unexpectedly thrust into the role of President of the United States after a bombing at the Capitol kills a number of key government figures. After being sworn in as President, he starts to learn that the catastrophic attack was only the beginning of a much larger plan.
TV Land announced today that Younger has been picked up for a seventh season. The good news comes midway through Season 6 of the dramedy, ensuring that the cable network's sole original scripted series continues for at least another year. The renewal was somewhat expected, as ratings have continued to be solid.
The half-hour series stars Sutton Foster as Liza, a 40-year-old single mother who pretends to be in her 20's after struggling to get back into the working world. Her lie helps her land a job at a publishing firm, but it also starts to complicate matters in her personal life.
Look for Season 7 of Younger in mid-2020.
It was announced today that The Orville will be moving to Hulu for its upcoming third season. Creator Seth MacFarlane broke the news at the show's Comic-Con panel, stating that production changes for Season 3 would delay its release and that the streaming service would be a better fit for its schedule needs.
The hour-long space dramedy is coming off a strong creative sophomore run which helped strengthen its already-loyal fan base. Its mix of thought-provoking sci-fi story lines and witty humour have helped it carve out an underserved niche in the television landscape.
Taking inspiration from Star Trek, The Orville takes place 400 years in the future, when Earth is just a small part of an advanced and mostly-peaceful Planetary Union. The U.S.S. Orville is a mid-level exploratory vessel with a human and alien crew led by rookie officer Ed Mercer, who is played by MacFarlane. Determined to prove his worth despite his First Officer being his ex-wife, Ed leads his crew as they face the wonders and dangers of outer space, while also dealing with the familiar workplace problems.
Look for Season 3 of The Orville to premiere on Hulu in late 2020.
Amazon announced today that The Boys has been picked up for a second season. The good news comes a week before the new superhero drama premieres its first season on the online giant's Prime Video streaming service.
Based on the comic book by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, the series is set in a world where powerful and revered superheroes abuse their powers instead of using them for good. To combat this, a superpowered CIA squad is tasked with monitoring the community and exposing the truth about The Seven, and Vought – the multi-billion dollar conglomerate that manages these superheroes and covers up all of their dirty secrets.
Season 1 of The Boys premieres on July 26 on Amazon Prime Video.
It was announced today that Fear the Walking Dead has been picked up by AMC for a sixth season. Executive Producer Scott M. Gimple broke the good news during the show's panel at this year's San Diego Comic-Con, just days ahead of this Sunday's mid-season finale.
The zombie drama, which began as a companion series to The Walking Dead, has seen some significant changes over the past two seasons. The new showrunner duo of Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg have altered its overall tone and storytelling style since Season 4, changing up the cast significantly as well. The show's timeline has also gotten closer to the mothership series, with two stars of The Walking Dead having now crossed over to Fear.
Look for Season 6 of Fear the Walking Dead to premiere in mid-2020. In the meantime, the second half of Season 5 returns on August 11.
It was announced today that Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. will be coming to an end after its already-ordered seventh season. The timing of news, which comes midway through Season 6, gives showrunners plenty of time to craft a proper ending to the veteran drama.
Premiering back in 2013, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is the longest-running series set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. At over 100 episodes, its lengthy run has been impressive by any standards. Like most shows of this age, its current ratings leave a lot to be desired, but its core audience still gives it decent numbers in its Friday night time slot, where it moved to in Season 5.
Look for the seventh and final season of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.in the summer of 2020.
Word is out that NBC Universal is reviving A.P. Bio for a third season on its upcoming streaming service. The good news comes two months after the comedy was cancelled following two low-rated seasons on NBC.
Created by Mike O'Brien and produced by Seth Meyers, the comedy premiered in 2018 as a mid-season entry that ultimately garnered mixed reviews and underwhelming viewership. Still, it was renewed for a second go-round, though its sophomore run did not improve its fortunes and it was axed in June.
Today's revival makes A.P. Bio the first confirmed original series on the as-yet-unnamed streaming service, which is set to debut sometime in 2020. While the show's return date has not been announced, Season 3 will likely premiere when the service launches.
The half-hour series follows a philosophy scholar who, after losing out on his dream job, takes a position as a high school Advanced Placement Biology teacher. But he has plans far beyond teaching biology, including using his classroom full of honor roll students to help him mentally break his job-stealing nemesis and win back the position that he feels is rightfully his.
CBS announced today that Blood & Treasure has been picked up for a second season. The summer adventure drama is seven episodes into its freshman run and has been performing decently for the network on Tuesday nights despite decidely-mixed reviews.
The hour-long series follows a brilliant antiquities expert who teams up with a cunning art thief in order to catch a ruthless terrorist who uses stolen treasure to fund his attacks. As the duo traverses the globe in search of their target, they unwittingly find themselves entrenched in a centuries-old battle for the cradle of civilization.
Look for Season 2 of Blood & Treasure in 2020, likely as a summer entry once again.
