Showtime Has Removed Additional Shows From Its Streaming Service
Yesterday in a memo to employees, Showtime and Paramount Media Networks President and CEO Chris McCarthy said the newly-merging brands will "divert investment away from areas that are underperforming and that account for less than 10% of our views." In a move that is disappointing but not surprising, it turns out the company's cost-cutting measures involve not just canceling shows but also purging them entirely from streaming. According to The Hollywood Reporter, a number of TV series have already been pulled from the Showtime streaming platform, which is set to be renamed Paramount+ with Showtime.
Among the shows that have reportedly disappeared are the unique and imaginative Jim Carrey project "Kidding" and the Kirsten Dunst-led dark comedy "On Becoming A God in Central Florida," both of which were critically acclaimed. The Jon Bernthal-led "American Gigolo" reimagining and a recent reboot of "Let the Right One In" were both cancelled just yesterday, and THR reports that those shows are also leaving the streamer. Pulled titles also reportedly include the anthology series "Super Pumped" (which had been renewed for a second season), and the family drama "American Rust."
The new era of unceremonious streaming purges continues
A couple of these shows were not particularly good, but others were great, and no show deserves to blip out of existence regardless of its quality. While the history of television has certainly always included series being pulled from air, the recent trend of purging titles with no warning, announcement, or in some cases, home video alternative – started last summer by HBO Max for tax write-off purposes – still sets a disturbing new precedent.
The shows listed above may be gone from Showtime, but they appear to still be available on Paramount+ for a short while longer. THR reports that the titles are likely to disappear from that service as well, though representatives from Showtime did not respond to the outlet's request for comment. Although the removal of original series from streamers (Starz has also jumped on the bandwagon) shows a troubling trend away from artistic preservation, there's still a possibility that the linear cable channels will at some point play reruns of these Showtime shows.
In HBO Max's case, some of the purged original series will likely land on FAST channels, free, ad-supported apps and websites like Tubi and The Roku Channel. Warner Bros Discovery is already in the process of building its own FAST channels, and one pulled and canceled show, "Generation," has already been licensed to Tubi. Memos from yesterday's Showtime and Paramount+ merger, though, do not make any mention of moves into the FAST programming arena, so it's unclear if or when streaming audiences will see these shows again.