‘People of Earth’ Canceled: TBS Reverses Course on Season 3 Renewal

TBS has delivered a bad message to People of Earth.

The Turner-owned cable network has reversed course on its third season renewal and canceled the alien abduction comedy from creator David Jenkins and executive producer Conan O’Brien.

“Just got word last night: TBS has canceled People of Earth. Thank you to everyone who was a fan of the show and enjoyed its gentle, amiable sci-fi weirdness. It was an honor sharing this show with you. Let’s do it again soon. Love you all,” Jenkins wrote Friday on Twitter, adding that the third season was “already written” and “will not be shot.” 

TBS renewed People of Earth for a third season in September when the basic cable network also handed out pickups for The Guest Book and Wrecked. The second season wrapped Sept. 25.

Never a ratings breakout but a critical favorite (The Hollywood Reporter‘s chief TV critic Tim Goodman ranked the series among the best comedies of 2017), People of Earth counted Greg Daniels (The Office) among its exec team. The comedy was produced by Warner Horizon Television and starred Wyatt Cenac (The Daily Show) as a guy who reluctantly joins a support group for alien “experiencers” who claim they have been abducted by aliens. Season one averaged 4.3 million total viewers across multiple platforms. The sophomore run was down considerably.

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Still, ratings have not been a factor in TBS’ renewal decisions. Since Kevin Reilly rebooted the comedy-focused network with edgier fare, executives had renewed every single series. The decision to reverse course on season three of People of Earth snaps that run.

TBS’ comedy lineup includes Angie Tribeca, The Detour, The Guest Book, Search Party, Wrecked, The Last O.G., the animated series American Dad and more.

For his part, Cenac has an HBO late-night series — Wyatt Cenac’s Problem Areas — which was renewed in May for a second season.