Why ABC Canceled Station 19

"Station 19" was one of the better Shonda Rhimes shows. As a spin-off of "Grey's Anatomy," it focused on the lives of the firefighters at Station 19 in Seattle, showcasing their struggles both in the line of duty and within their personal lives. It's the kind of soapy drama fans of "Grey's Anatomy" could watch on Thursday nights, and while it wasn't a bad idea to watch all of "Grey's Anatomy" first, it was largely its own story that could be seen in a vacuum. But if you did manage to watch both shows at the same time, it made the numerous crossover specials all the more monumental. 

"Grey's Anatomy" has had a solid run, having debuted in 2005 and still cranking out new episodes. Sadly, "Station 19" wouldn't amass the same kind of legacy. News of "Station 19" ending after season 7 came in December 2023, ahead of the final episodes. The show also received a truncated final season of only 10 episodes, whereas season 6 had 18. So why did ABC cancel "Station 19" after a relatively short run — at least compared to something like "Grey's Anatomy"?

Late 2023 and early 2024 saw a slew of shows meet early demises. In addition to "Station 19," ABC also axed "The Good Doctor" after seven seasons. CBS wasn't much kinder, as that network cancelled "Young Sheldon" and "Blue Bloods" around this time, too. Something must've been in the air, and there's a good chance it had to do with networks wanting to trim some fat in the direct aftermath of the 2023 SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes. 

An exact reason has never been given, but Deadline spoke with an insider who said it was a matter of money, despite "Station 19" doing pretty well as far as ratings.

"It came down to ABC wanting to save money in a push for an economical schedule balancing scripted fare with reality and live sports."

"Station 19" had some behind-the-scenes drama preceding its cancellation, as there was reportedly a script turned in that had a slur used by a racist character, causing producers to intervene. This led to Zoanne Clack getting promoted to head writer in 2022, and she would eventually move over to co-showrunner alongside Peter Paige. Plenty of shows have drama amidst creatives, and more than likely, "Station 19" fell victim to a network that wanted to save a few bucks and put more of an emphasis on cheaper programming.

No one wants to get the news that a show they worked so hard on is getting the axe. At least "Station 19" had one more season, short as it may be, to wrap things up and provide the audience, as well as the cast and crew, some semblance of closure. And showrunners Zoanne Clack and Peter Paige were able to deliver the sad news to their team in person before they heard from outside sources ... but only barely.

Clack and Paige spoke with TVLine about what it was like to get the news the next season of "Station 19" would be the last. And the execs at ABC were actually trying to get hold of Clack while she was giving a panel presentation. 

"I kept getting calls, and I finally texted and said, 'Is this important? I'm in front of people!' And they were like, 'OK, you can wait.' And you know how sometimes after a panel people want to talk to you? [I didn't do that,] I just got on the phone and then I was told. I called Peter as soon as I heard and was like, 'Why did this happen?' as I'm driving to Disney."

Clack and Paige contacted the actors, writers, and everyone else who made the show possible to show up to an all-hands-on-deck meeting as soon as possible so that they could personally deliver the news. And they succeeded, albeit only by three minutes, according to Paige. It was probably better emotionally to have the meeting rather than everyone find out they're out of a job from a social media post.