Amazon removes Their own club From its script sequence.
The retail giant and streamer has canceled the queer-themed reboot of Benny Marshall’s 1992 film after previously renewing the series for a four-episode second and final season. Sources say Sony Pictures Television, which produces the show, is planning to buy it League Hopefully the series will find a new home for season two. Before the Writers Guild of America strike on May 2, the scripts for the four episodes planned for the series finale were completed.
The decision to cancel the series was made by co-creators/showrunners Will Graham and Abby Jacobson (who also starred) as Hollywood’s first double strikes since the 1960s halted production. Graham and Jacobson struggled to secure a second season of the series as Amazon and producers Sony Pictures negotiated to reduce the license fee for the television show. Writing and pre-production for the four-episode “limited series” began in the spring and is on track as writers and artists receive fair wages from the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
Amazon representatives note that the strikes would have delayed the arrival of the series — and the non-renewals The Peripheral — until 2025, when the subscription platform already has a large catalog of originals.
Since early 2018, Graham has hired Jacobsen (A sprawling city) is a more modern take on Benny Marshall’s beloved 1992 film starring Geena Davis, Lori Petty, Madonna, Rosie O’Donnell and Tom Hanks. Graham and Jacobson received Marshall’s blessing on the renewal before her death. The duo has hired several members of the former AAGPBL as consultants — including the legendary Mabel Blair, who came out as gay at the age of 95 during a press tour for the show.
The series, starring Jacobson, D’Arcy Gordon, Sandy Adams, Melanie Field and Kate Berland, is a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it take on the sexism and racism briefly featured in Marshall’s film. In addition to featuring the stories of the league’s queer players, Amazon also explored the plight of black women who were not allowed to join the tag league.
The eight-episode first season premiered in August concurrently to positive reviews; It currently holds a 94 percent rating among critics and an 87 percent rating among viewers on Rotten Tomatoes. The show has received recognition from GLAAD (Best New Television Series), Independent Spirit Awards (Actress Gbemisola Ikumelo) and NAACP Image Awards (Costume Design). It has been honored by the Critics’ Choice Association, the Women’s Empowerment Group in Entertainment Award, the Human Rights Campaign’s National Vision Award, and the National Council of La Raza’s Voice and Vision Award.
as THR Earlier this year, several insiders at the streamer revealed that its reliance on testing and data led to a showdown between Graham and marketing executives last summer over data that tracked viewers. league’Vin’s bizarre stories were off-putting and suggested that those themes be downplayed in materials promoting the show. Graham also expressed concern about bias built into Amazon’s system for rating shows, which many sources said ranked broad series with mostly straight, white male leads. According to the report, Amazon has taken the issue seriously and abandoned the system of ranking shows based on audience scores.
