Why CBS Canceled The Damon Wayans Sitcom Poppa's House

Back in 2022, a new CBS sitcom was announced that would see Damon Wayans and Damon Wayans Jr. playing a father-son duo. At the time, Deadline described "Poppa's House" as "a dream on-screen sitcom pairing [that's been] two decades in the making," and while that may have been a bit of an exaggeration, it was at least exciting to hear that Wayans Sr. was returning to network comedy following his successful ABC series "My Wife and Kids." That early 2000s sitcom ran for five seasons and became a beloved part of many a millennial's childhood. As such, Damon Wayans returning to multi-camera comedy seemed like it could be a success — especially if that comedy also starred his real-life son, with whom he had an undeniable comedic chemistry as evidenced by their previous collaborations.

"My Wife and Kids" also featured Wayans Jr. in a recurring role, before the actor went on to star in comedy shows like "Happy Endings" and "New Girl." He then led the CBS sitcom "Happy Together," which, sadly, only lasted for one season. "Poppa's House," however, seemed like it could push beyond a single season, especially since "Happy Together" had showcased Wayans and Wayans Jr.'s comedic chemistry in an episode titled, "Like Father, Like Son."

Co-written by Wayans and executive producer Kevin Hench, "Poppa's House" starred the "Saturday Night Live" alum (who was fired, and then brought back in season 11) as divorced talk-radio host Damon "Poppa" Fulton, who lives in the suburbs right next door to his adult son, Junior (Wayans Jr). At work, Poppa finds himself challenged by a new female co-host in the form of self-help guru Ivy (Essence Atkins), while Junior finds himself moving further away from his dream of becoming a film director in order to satisfy his wife's desires for a stable life together. The father and son often cross paths due to their living situation, with Poppa frequently finding the peace of his home life shattered by drop-ins from his family and neighbors. As decent enough a premise as that might sound, "Poppa's House" ultimately proved to be as enduring as "Happy Together," with CBS pulling the plug after just one season.

"Poppa's House" debuted on October 21, 2024 and ran for 18 episodes until April 28, 2025. In March, Deadline reported that the sitcom remained "on the bubble," which essentially means it was in a sort of purgatory whereby it hadn't been cancelled but also hadn't yet been renewed for a new season. In other words, the writing was pretty much on the wall at that point. According to the outlet, CBS was eager to trim the show's budget and talks on that topic were ongoing. But at the same time, the network was reportedly weighing "Poppa's House" against three pilots — "DMV," "Zarna," and "The Neighborhood" spin-off — for what was set to become a single comedy slot for the 2025-26 schedule.

A month later, CBS officially announced it had decided not to renew the series. According to Deadline, "DMV" was the show that won the single comedy slot for the new season, meaning "Poppa's House" and the other pilots were scrapped. It seems, then, that while there were initial plans to reduce the cost of making the Wayans' sitcom, the show's ratings simply weren't good enough to justify a renewal. Deadline reported that the show's ratings were below the three other CBS comedy series which had been renewed: "Ghosts," "Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage," as well and "The Neighborhood."

Season 1 wasn't savaged by critics, and certainly wasn't one of the worst sitcoms of all time. In fact, the show received a perfectly good 86% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes. Robert Lloyd of The Los Angeles Times surmised that "The Wayanses are having an evident good time working together" while Variety's Aramide Tinubu thought the cast had "chemistry in spades." Then again, one of the jokes in "Poppa's House" involved Ivy recoiling at an "asinine" comment from Poppa, only for Wayans' character to respond, "First of all, my a** ain't a nine, it's a 10." So, yeah, not the worst, but certainly not the best sitcom ever.

So far, the only person involved with "Poppa's House" to address the show's cancellation publicly is Damon Wayans. In an Instagram post, Wayans called the short-lived series a "beautiful journey," before thanking everyone involved in the project, from his castmates to the writers and crew. He continued:

"A very special thank you to my son, Damon Jr. working beside you has been one of the greatest joys of my life. And to my incredible family, siblings, children and grandchildren, nieces and nephews, who showed up as writers, guest stars, and creative forces you made this journey even more meaningful. It's such a blessing to have so much love on one set and to be able to create and laugh with family and friends."

Clearly, making "Poppa's House" meant a lot to the comedian, who went on to say that even though the show had been cancelled, he was "walking away with deep gratitude, lifelong friendships, and unforgettable memories."

TV history is littered with short-lived sitcoms, many of which were yanked from the airwaves before they'd even finished their first run of episodes. The short-lived sitcom in which David Schwimmer starred prior to "Friends," for example, lasted just a few episodes before Fox pulled the plug, and ABC cancelled a Heather Graham sitcom after a single episode. As such, the Wayans family can be proud to have made it through a season with decent ratings and solid reviews. It just simply wasn't enough to keep them on the air at the time.