HBO cancels Westworld ahead of final season

HBO surprised its subscribers and the TV industry on Friday by announcing the cancellation of big-budget sci-fi series Westworld just months after the end of its fourth season, according to Variety.

According to recent announcements from two showrunners, Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, the series, which received 54 Emmy nominations, was due to end with its fifth season. The creative husband and wife couple had a specific ending in mind that would now not make it to the screen, although many viewers felt that the season 4 ending also worked as a closure.

Several factors contributed to HBO’s decision, including high production costs, declining viewership, and weak critical reception amid an overall cost-cutting effort by newly formed parent company Warner Bros. discovery. Westworld set records when it first hit the screens, but its viewership has dwindled with each season, and its recently aired fourth season has seen a particularly steep drop.

HBO is known for tent dramas, and its current lineup is ambitious and promising. It includes the Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon, the video game adaptation of The Last of Us, the critically acclaimed White Lotus and Legacy, and the hit Euphoria. With such an expensive series lineup, it also seems like the struggling world of the Old West may have gotten a little lost in the noise.

Nolan und Joy nannten Westworld „einen der Höhepunkte“ ihrer Karrieren und sagten in einer Erklärung, dass sie „das Privileg hatten, diese Geschichten über die Zukunft des Bewusstseins – sowohl des menschlichen als auch des nichtmenschlichen – in kurzer Zeit zu erzählen.“ Unsere KI-Oberherren verbieten uns das.“

Dies ist jedoch nicht das Ende des Weges für das Duo; Ihre Produktionsfirma hat einen Vertrag mit Amazon unterzeichnet und sie arbeiten an einer neuen Serie, die auf der legendären Fallout-Videospielreihe basiert.