HBO Cancels 'Enlightened'

5:01 PM PDT 3/19/2013 by Philiana Ng , Lesley Goldberg

732
248
0
1
78
Email
Print
Comments

"It was a very difficult decision," HBO said in a statement. "We’re proud of the show, and we look forward to working with Mike White and Laura Dern in the future."

HBO

"Enlightened"

HBO has canceled Enlightened.

'Girls,' 'Enlightened' Return to HBO for Second Seasons in January

HBO Renews 'Enlightened,' Cancels 'Hung,' 'Bored to Death,' 'How to Make It In America'

After two seasons, the pay cabler is not moving forward with the half-hour dramedy co-created by Mike White and Laura Dern, who also starred.

"It was a very difficult decision," HBO said in a statement. "We’ve decided not to continue Enlightened for a third season. We’re proud of the show, and we look forward to working with Mike White and Laura Dern in the future."

Enlightened centered on Amy Jellicoe (Dern), a self-destructive executive, who, after her professional life implodes and an awakening in rehab, attempts to get her life together. Dern won a Golden Globe for the role in 2012.

Enlightened did see a ratings spike in its second season, opening in January to 300,000 viewers. That was up from the 210,000 it debuted to in its late 2011 Monday slot. But like its Girls lead-in, Enlightened dipped as its short order went on. It bottomed out with just 130,000 viewers the week before its 200,000-strong finale.

The news comes as HBO is prepping to bow Christopher Guest's comedy Family Tree in May. The premium cabler also has four comedy pilots in the works: People in New Jersey from EP Lorne Michaels; Mike Judge's Silicon Valley; the Duplass brothers' Togetherness; and the Jonathan Groff-led comedy about a group of gay friends in San Francisco.

Michael O'Connell contributed to this report.