Big Sky Canceled at ABC After Three Seasons

ABC has axed Big Sky. Deadline reports that the show has been officially canceled after three seasons with no plans to develop a season 4. The show is one of three to be axed by the network on Friday, joining Alaska Daily and The Company You Keep. As of now, there’s no word on whether the producers plan on shopping the series elsewhere for a potential pickup. However, there was reportedly a pitch for a potential fourth season that was described as a “creative reboot” which would have had more direct involvement from creator David E. Kelley.

Per the new report, it’s believed that falling ratings are the primary reason behind Big Sky getting the boot. The third season is said to have been among the lowest of the TV season for ABC’s scripted content. Making matters worse were rumors of on-set drama and “challenging economics” involved with developing a drama show’s fourth season. With all of this in mind, the news is not exactly surprising, even if it may be disappointing for many fans.

Big Sky is based on the original book series by C.J. Box. It stars Katheryn Winnick and Kylie Bunbury, with the third season, titled Big Sky: Deadly Trails, also starring Jamie-Lynn Sigler, J. Anthony Pena, Jensen Ackles, and Reba McEntire. Darius Rucker, Rosanna Arquette, and Lyle Lovett also made guest appearances in the third season.

Related: Big Sky Cast: Character Guide and Descriptions

Big Sky Gets the Boot

Showrunner Elwood Reid previously spoke about the potentiality for a fourth season after season 3 was finished airing. He said that it was up in the air whether a renewal would happen but that there were plenty of creative plans preemptively in place just in case. Whether any of that will get to be explored if the show moves elsewhere remains to be seen. Reid was also hoping that changing the show’s format starting with season 3 would help freshen things up enough to create more interest in season 4.

“I think the thing that excited me about this season was calling it Deadly Trails and telling one story and then adding the crime of the week,” Reid told TV Guide. “I think it’s a really successful formula for the show that we finally found. So the answer to that question is, we’ve got a lot of ideas. We’ve got one particularly fun, big storyline that involves a lot of our favorite characters… These characters are so fun, and this world that David [E.] Kelley created is really fun, so I’ve got tons of material to keep going if ABC wants us to do that.”

Witht hat said, Reid also knew that the reality was that Big Sky could possibly be finished with its third season. He had been told by the network to provide a somewhat conclusive ending for the season, though leaving some unanswered questions was fine. That’s why there are still some remaining questions that fans might have after the third season’s finale.

“ABC’s mandate was: ‘Satisfy the plot, but make sure we have emotional cliffhangers,'” Reid recalled. And I think we have done that and touched on those things: What does Reba’s character do? Where do Cormac and Cassie go in their relationship, [with] this guy whose mother is in jail and his father is a murderer? Where do weird Walter and Paige [Madalyn Horcher] go with their relationship? Where does Donno and Tonya’s relationship go? And of course, the very big end is, what’s up with Jenny and Beau? We were very deliberate with that.”

Big Sky is streaming on Hulu.