Cancelled Tv Shows That Should Be Brought Back

There is no worse feeling than falling in love with a television show only to have it canceled -- especially when a show ends on a massive cliffhanger. It's a universal feeling every television fan hates.

Over the years, hundreds of great shows have been canceled, for many different reasons, but only a few have been able to rise from the dead. Whether they came back because fans rallied around a show or a new network chose to purchase the rights, having a television show get put back into production after being canceled is always exciting for the shows' fans.

10 Arrested Development

The Bluth family made their debut onArrested Developmentback in 2003 when it began airing on Fox. The show was immediately met with critical acclaim and cultivated a devoted fan base.

In fact, the fan base was so devoted that when it was rumored Fox was going to cancel the series after its second season they launched several fan campaigns to save the show. Their work was successful and Fox granted the series a third series, but later canceled it. However, that wasn't the end ofArrested Development, and in 2012, Netflix greenlit the series for a fourth season.

9 Brooklyn Nine-Nine

One of the more recent shows to be resurrected from cancelation is the comedic police procedural,Brooklyn Nine-Nine.The comedy series originally ran on Fox from September 2013 until May of 2018 when Fox announced its cancelation.

Fans were quick to jump on Twitter, launching a campaign to save the show. The movement gained so much attention that even the cast of the show and other celebrities joined in. Within 24 hours, the series was picked up by NBC.

8 Community

Communitycentered itself on a ragtag group of adults who attend a community college. The series began airing in September 2009 on NBC and was canceled after its fifth season in April 2014.

The series was canceled due to low ratings, but its cult following wouldn't accept the cancelation and quickly took to social media to voice their concern. In the end, Yahoo Screens picked up the series for its sixth and final season. While the series has officially ended, many fans and the cast are still holding out hope that the series will get a film, one day.

7 Family Guy

Seth MacFarlane's iconic animated family sitcom,Family Guy, is now one of the longest-running primetime shows of all time, but it almost didn't get a chance to earn this title.

Family Guybegan airing on Fox in January of 1999, but after low ratings, the series was canceled after its third season. Fox had no intention of reviving the show, but afterFamily Guystarted earning high ratings through reruns, and DVD sales skyrocketed, Fox renewed the series in 2005.

6 Futurama

Futuramais another animated comedy series to be canceled, only to be saved a few years later. The animated sci-fi series follows Fry, a pizza-delivery guy who ends up waking up 1,000 years in the future.

The series originally aired on Fox from 1999 until 2003 when Fox canceled the series. The series then began airing reruns, where it picked up a considerable following, allowing the creators to create four direct-to-video films. From there, the series was acquired by Comedy Central, who ended up reviving the series for two more seasons.

5 Nashville

ABC's musical drama series,Nashville,starred Connie Britton and Hayden Panettiere as two rival country singers who battle for stardom in the country music scene. The series premiered in October of 2012 and was canceled after its fourth season in May 2016.

Outraged by the news, fans launched a petition to save the show, which quickly gained traction on social media. A month later, it was announced thatNashvillehad been saved by CMT, and by January 2017, the fifth season began airing on its new network.

4 One Day At A Time

A reboot of the popular Norman Lear sitcom of the same name, the modern-dayOne Day At A Timecenters on the life of a Cuban-American family living in Los Angeles.

One Day At A Timebegan airing on Netflix in 2017 and spent three seasons on the streaming network before it was canceled due to low viewers. Once again, fans took to social media launching the #SaveODAAT campaign, and three months later, the family sitcom found a new home on Pop. Unfortunately, the fourth season began airing in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, cutting its fourth season short. Fans are once again rallying to save the show from cancelation.

3 Sense8

The sci-fi drama series Sense8quickly found a cult following when it dropped on Netflix in June of 2015. The series centers on eight strangers who find themselves connected to each other for an unknown reason.

Sense8was canceled after its second season, which had ended on a massive cliffhanger. Determined to get the ending they deserved, fans launched petitions and held various protests across social media, urging Netflix to allow the show to wrap up the story. In the end, Netflix granted the series a two-and-a-half-hour finale, which allowed the creators to tie up all the loose ends.

2 Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Star Wars: The Clone Warsbegan as a theatrical film before it spun off into an animated series that began airing on Cartoon Network in October 2008. The series was a massive hit amongst fans and quickly became Cartoon Network's highest-rated show. However, the network canceled the show after five seasons because LucasFilm wanted to take the series in a different direction.

The series moved to Netflix, where it aired for one season before it was once again canceled.Star Wars: The Clone Warswas resurrected one final time, this time by Disney+, which aired the series's seventh and final season in February 2020.

1 Veronica Mars

Veronica Marshas arguably the most interesting history when it comes to television shows that were revised years later. The teen noir mystery series centered on Veronica Mars (Kristen Bell), a teenager who regularly helps her private investigator father with his job.

The series's first season aired on UPN before the network became The CW.Veronica Mars'sthird and final season aired on The CW before it was canceled. However, in 2013, the series creator, along with Kristen Bell, took to the internet to gauge fan interest in aVeronica Marsfilm. They ended up launching a Kickstarter campaign that raised $2 million in under 11 hours. TheVeronica Marsfilm released in 2014. With its success, the creators were able to convince Hulu into letting them create a fourth season for the show, which was released in July 2019.

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About The Author

Danielle Bruncati (250 Articles Published)

Danielle Bruncati was born and raised in Southern California and has been a story-teller for as long as she can remember. She is currently a freelance writer for ScreenRant and is also pursuing a Master's Degree in Television Writing and Producing from a top 10 film school. When she's not writing, Danielle can be found binging the latest sitcom or teen tv series with her dog by her side or walking around Disneyland with a Mickey-shaped snack in hand.

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