Fox is grounding all future flights to Fantasy Island, cancelling the reboot after two seasons, TVLine has learned. The May 8 season finale will now serve as a series finale.
“We were very pleased with Fantasy Island‘s fun and escapist creative, which we had hoped would gain strong traction among viewers,” the network said in a statement, adding: “We’d also like to thank Fantasy Island’s cast, led by Roselyn Sánchez, Kiara Barnes and John Gabriel Rodriquez, crew and executive producers Liz Craft, Sarah Fain and Anne Clements for their partnership on the series.”
This season, Fantasy Island averaged 2.8 million total viewers and a 0.3 demo rating (with Live+7 playback). Out of the eight dramas that Fox has aired this TV season — including 9-1-1, which is moving to ABC, and the cancelled The Resident — it ranked last in total audience and tied last fall’s ill-fated Monarch for last in the demo.
Though Fantasy Island boasted a small group of series regulars — Roselyn Sánchez as Elena Roarke, Kiara Barnes as Ruby Akuda and John Gabriel Rodriquez as Javier — you never knew which familiar faces were bound to pop up. Notable visitors to the island have included Scandal‘s Bellamy Young; Melrose Place‘s Daphne Zuniga, Josie Bissett and Laura Leighton; Desperate Housewives‘ Teri Hatcher and James Denton; Beverly Hills, 90210‘s Jason Priestley; and the late, great Leslie Jordan.
A continuation of the original Fantasy Island, which aired from 1977 to 1984, Fox’s updated take was developed by executive producers and co-showrunners Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain. Fantasy Island‘s 10-episode first season aired from August to December 2021, while the premiere of Season 2 was held until January 2023.
TVLine’s 2023 Renewal/Cancellation Scorecard has been updated to reflect Fantasy Island‘s fate. Were you a fan of the Fox reboot? Drop a comment with your thoughts below.
it this for they dumb surf show ?!!!! I think they know where to put it
I really loved the Fantasy Island reboot. I honestly have not liked ANY othereboot, but I did this one. Hoping they change their minds, or another network picks it up!!
what are you saying?
I really liked the reboot of Fantasy Island more than the original one. I enjoy magic and science fiction and the cast and storylines were fresh and the cast really gelled over the two seasons. Sorry to see it go.
Me too. Such a sweet show.
Same! At least we got a great finale.
I really enjoyed the reboot of Fantasy Island! I wish the network wouldn’t have canceled it! Networls need to give shows more time to grow. I personally will record the 1st season of a show, wait to see if it gets renewed before I will watch it. I had really liking a show & getting “invested” in it, for it only to get canceled. Hopefully another network will pick up Fantasy Island!!!
Also, Fox, please no more reality shows…so over them!
Well they did give it 2 seasons, more than many shows get.
I liked it better than the origin show. It takes time for a show to gel, and this ensemble had it. Thank you so much everyone. I needed this fantasy island in my life, until I can get my own life back.
Totally agree is it taken off all the family shows and put reality on I personally do not like reality so I guess I’ll be moving on to another station
I as well. I watched the original when I was really young, but never enjoyed it as much as I did this one.
They cancel this and keep Farmer Wants a Wife. LOL Whatever. Keep your crappy reality shows. What a shame.
They have no sense of good tv!
Yes, totally agree! I will miss this show!!
Yep!! Who cares about these people that can find love on there own!!!
The production costs of Farmer are orders of magnitude less than those for any drama.
Yes when you use facts and logic of course it makes sense.
Tell me you’re a snob without… OK, Coastal Elite, understand that some folks like other things.
This show was garbage. No loss.
I guess non reality “reality” shows are more your speed.
What a shame indeed. 🫣
No….! I was really liking that show! Oh well, I’m sure Sanchez will find something else. She is a beautiful lady and a good actress.
Really liked this “guilty pleasure” show. Of course Fox canceled it! Thought the cast were great and the storylines entertaining. Booooo Fox
I agree! This is one show I really looked forward to every week. :( So sad it’s gone. The crap TV shows they keep baffle me.
I was so much more attached to this one than the original. It was light, escapist fair, but still had a great message about moving in with your life. Roselyn Sánchez and Kiara Barnes were a delight and fantastic. Also really loved learning a bit more about the caretakership of the island. I’d love for this to land somewhere else… although I’m sure those chances are slim. BTW… absolutely adored the updated treatment of the theme song!
Ugh. “Moving on with your life”
Shame. It was really finding its groove (which did take a little while.) Another decent show gone.
This is extremely disappointing. I dont get this network. Fantasy Island was a nice escape show. They cancelled the Resident but renewed that awful missing persons alert show..can’t even remember the title.
That missing person show, which I didn’t watch all of, really felt like it worked as a mini-series. I’m kind of annoyed they canceled Fantasy Island and kept that.
I agree. The best part of the missing person show was the mystery with son. With that pretty much resolved it didn’t need to come back. Also.. I would have gladly continued watching the Resident. Both it and Fantasy Island deserved another season.
I really love Fantasy Island. It was such a wonderful feel good show. And I love Roslyn Sanchez and Kiara Barnes. I kind of dislike May because it is when the network brass renews and cancels shows. I’m not happy about the cancellation of Fantasy Island.
Love The Resident, 911 and Fantasy Island. At least 911 still lives somewhere. Don’t the networks care at all about what their viewers want to see.
I’m not going to bother getting interested in a show anymore. I liked Fantasy Island & Monarch. Maybe we should just have ALL reality shows. Reality – everyone knows that they are scripted. So how real are they???
Too bad, I really liked this one. The guest stars from all my childhood faves really gave it a sense of nostalgia. Fox is really bad at promoting shows and I think we’ve lost a lot of good ones because of that. Prodigal Son and Pivoting are two other ones that should’ve made it.
I liked Fantasy Island as pure escapism television, something that we all need right now. It always left me with a smile on my face.
Prodigal Son was a gem of a show that never should have been cancelled! Imagine having that kind of talent and letting it go? Obviously the people in charge don’t care about quality, just money.
I still really miss Prodigal Son. I think that was their worst cancellation in a long time.
Why did you have to bring up Prodigal Son?! I’m still not over that!
I enjoyed the show, but I’m not surprised. It never felt like “must see” TV. The island itself was gorgeous, but it often felt like they were scraping by with minimal production resources beyond the pretty scenery.
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I also would have liked a more consistent logic for how the fantasy “magic” worked. Sometimes it’s a pocket dimension, sometimes its a spell that seems to bewitch all of the poor unsuspecting locals. And do the staff actually have any control, or are they just improvising with whatever the island throws at them?
Smarty pants comments, thanks for sharing, I’d like to have you for Happy Hour with me in Key West. But your wants had nothing to do with the essence of this show. eg, I was interested in how they marketed it, but those questions, like yours, were what the creators were savvy enough to elide.
I always thought that Elena’s connection to the island (as the latest Roarke caretaker) gave her some insight into the fantasy… she was able to guide it a bit, as seen in the S2 finale where the ‘wives club’ almost went too far. She was not in control… but there was a partnership between the Roarkes and the island to give people what they needed. That was enough for me. However, I also liked that Elena was still learning… so she stumbled a bit as well… while looking absolutely amazing in those dazzling white outfits. Roselyn Sánchez and Kiara Barnes were simply stunning.
Sharp. I agree. Mike D, tell the truth, were you a writer for the show?
LOL! I wish! Just a lifetime comic book / sci-fi aficionado… who tries to read between the lines. It’s part of what makes me sad about this cancellation… there was a building ‘mythology’ to the island that was being revealed… but slowly enough to not be the main focus… a la ‘Lost’.
At one point, before the reveal… I was kind of wondering if “Isla” was a personification of the island, making itself known to Ruby.
Fox is making a habit of ejecting good shows and people and keeping the losing shows. Fantasy Island was a great show with drama and essential lightness. Think again about dropping it.
Absolutely agree!!!
Totally agree! C’mon Fox…seriously don’t cancel this one.
Not nice! Better than any ‘reality’ nonsense on. How disappointing.
I liked this show pure fantasy..no guns no dead bodies, no lawyers, no cops, no car chases and no stupid reality stars…so obviously it was going to get cancelled. To bad
Sad to hear, but not surprised. Considering how long it took them to get Season 2 on the air, I can only imagine how long it would take to try to ramp production back up.
The show was ready to go sooner than it started airing. the network delayed the season opening
More than once. These eps were supposed to air a year ago. That’s why it was doomed to be cancelled, production has been shut down for too long.
I just watched the finale on my lunch break. I will miss this fun escapist show, but I’m glad they were able to end it on a happy note without a cliff hanger. Not every show needs to be a serious life or death cop /hospital/court show or a reality show. =(
This is so dumb, it was so steady they could have put it back to the summers.
First call me kat and now this. Those were the 2 shows I watched on fox. I guess they like trash shows like masked singer and farmer wants a wife. (Tbh, I’ve never watched those shows…but seeing commercials for them literally has my desire at 0% to even gice them a chance.)
Will miss the show I really liked it one of my favorites
Fox is the new Netflix cancelling everything I watch or letting it go. I guess it’s the Gordon Ramsey Network. They make us wait a year and a half for the new season. They should have kept this a summer show. Much better than what they’re keeping! I guess I will be watching Fox an hour each week next season.
Of course they cancelled Fantasy Island. They had to make room for another Gordon Ramsey show. They are still working on a way to include him in all of their other programs. I heard that next season he begins appearing on The Simpsons as the neighbor when Ned sells his home.
That’s so disappointing… the Resident, Call Me Kat, 911 moving and now this is cancelled! Well that leaves only Lone Star for me, then no more Fox for the rest of the week.
It wasn’t appointment television, but it was a nice alternative to the otherwise countless police and medical dramas…and this coming from a viewer that watches many of these too. I usually watched it on Hulu the next day.
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I liked shows like this or ones like Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist, Kevin…Probably Saves the World, Pushing Up Daisies, etc. shows that could be enjoyed by all ages. There are just very few shows out there that break the usual.
So sad to lose Fantasy Island. Excellent stories, beautiful people and scenery, complex and interesting character development. 3 million viewers isn’t enough? I guess old cable has to give excellent material to streaming if it can’t maintain material like this.