Sunnyside Cancelled as Remaining Eps Move Online, Will & Grace‘s Final Season to Fill NBC’s Thursday Void
The sun has set on Sunnyside: NBC has cancelled Kal Penn’s struggling rookie comedy, although the series’ remaining episodes will see the light of day online. Meanwhile, the final season of Will & Grace
— which was slated to premiere at midseason — will come off the bench early to fill Sunnyside‘s Thursday-at-9:30 void beginning Thursday, Oct. 24.
Per NBC, Sunnyside‘s remaining seven episodes will air weekly on the NBC App and NBC.com (among other digital platforms). The Michael Schur-EP’d sitcom is currently in production on Episode 9 and will finish production of all 11 episodes. (Ten episodes were initially ordered, but NBC confirms that it has commissioned an 11th outing.)
Sunnyside premiered last month to 1.77 million total viewers and a 0.4 demo rating, making it the least watched and lowest rated freshman show premiere on the Big 4 networks this fall. By its third airing, it slipped to 1.18 million viewers and a 0.3 demo rating.
Will & Grace‘s most recent revival season, meanwhile, averaged more than double Sunnyside’s numbers — with more than 3 million viewers and a 0.7 demo rating.
“Dear Hollywood — I have 10 funny, heartwarming patriotic episodes of the most diverse show on television for ya,” Penn declared on Twitter shortly after news of the show’s cancellation broke. “Any takers, call me! We have INSANELY talented writers & cast and are interested in selling this to an established streamer that wants a fun, relevant comedy!”
TVLine’s 2020 Renewal Scorecard has been updated to reflect Sunnyside‘s demise.
Not surprised. I found the frist two episodes PAINFULLY unfunny.
Fitting, I find Kal Penn painfully unfunny.
Welp, at least they’re letting it continue online. I know they’ve done this for a few cancelled shows in the past, but I don’t recall them releasing the unaired episodes in this manner, almost like it was still on the air. As for W&G, I wonder if they’re going to increase their episode order, since they’re starting earlier than expected. Or will they just air more specials and reruns to get them through the end of the season?
There may be a contract involved which requires weekly releases, but it may simply be to allow episodes to be produced. It’s likely they’re allowing the episodes to continue so they can be later added to the Peacock streaming service.
This never should have been on NBC at all. I wanted to check it out but then I saw the commercial about “doggystyle” jokes, etc…do they really think the average viewer wants to sit down with their families and watch this garbage?
It isn’t a family comedy. So the point is moot.
The problem is not “doggystyle jokes, etc…” The problem was it simply was not funny.
What was the last scripted show to be pulled from the schedule?
I’m not sure if it was the last before this one, but NBC did also pull DC comics based comedy Powerless, I believe.
Shows get cancelled all the time
Jack, recently shows have been allowed to finish their 13 episode orders while airing. A show hasn’t been pulled from the schedule recently.
Last TV season was sort of an oddity, with low rated shows being allowed to finish their runs. I think the only fall show to get pulled last year was The Alec Baldwin Show, and that was really a combo of his bad PR and low numbers (and even then, it may have just been moved to Saturdays and still allowed to finish- I can’t recall exactly). I could be mistaken, but I feel like the year before had a few more shows pulled before their runs completed, which is more typical. I’m actually surprised that more shows haven’t been pulled yet this season, given how soft the numbers have been for many of fall’s new TV shows, but then again, even returning shows are down and TVLine just published an article the other day about how the soft numbers don’t affect the bottom line as much anymore.
Wasn’t “I Feel Bad”? pulled than burned off in the summer?
I’m surprised they’re using Will & Grace as a replacement and not Brooklyn 99, especially since W&G is entering its final season
Actually, that’s probably exactly why; since W&G is set for its final season, it almost doesn’t matter how that fares now. Short of some bizarre kind of controversy or ratings even worse than Sunnyside (maybe?), it’s not going anywhere until it wraps.
I never really thought about it that way, but it makes sense! Final seasons really do make the great replacements…
not all shows film on the same schedule – especially shows that are also shot on locations – Brooklyn 99 is probably a show that takes longer to film than other shows
Not surprised, but still a shame, ’cause I was enjoying the show and curious to see where else it could go.
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Best of luck to everybody involved in whatever they do next, then. And look forward to “Will & Grace” getting an early return.
That was quick. I really thought it would be paired with Superstore. It really looked like one of those long running, low rated comedies NBC is known for…
No surprise here. As much as I love Kal Penn, it just simply wasn’t good. And the way Kal was flooding Twitter trying to get people to watch, you could tell the end was near. And now he’s out there trying to get it picked up by a streaming service. You have to admire his commitment.
Oh, He should be committed, thats for sure!
I think most of us had this in the pool. ;) The only question is if The Unicorn is next…
One can only hope…
One can only hope? Maybe just don’t watch it?
The unicorn is on cbs not nbc
Yes, we all know that…but what is your point? That that somehow makes it less likely to be canceled despite how bad it is?
You really think it’s that bad? It’s not laugh out loud kinda funny, but I find it one of the more enjoyable sitcoms I’ve run into in awhile. With The Good Place going away, I could use another show that made me feel things, the way the good sitcoms used to. The Unicorn at least did that.
I gave up midway thru episode two.. And its a shame.. Because I wanted to support it… Imagine 1st generation American.. And I’m from NYC.. I know all about immigrant struggles from all doff kinds of immigrants but this just wasn’t hitting AT ALL
This should’ve been better than it is. At least “Perfect Harmony” is better than it should’ve been.
Once it was revealed that it was a Kal Penn helmed series, I knew it would be toast!
Yeah it was doomed with Penn at the helm. He is very annoying.
I’m just excited Will and Grace is coming back early!!
I haven’t watched this, but I’m glad they’ll get to finish the season. And with two episodes’ notice, hopefully the writers will have a chance to craft some sort of a satisfying finale.
I Will be Shocked if Will is the actual Father of this Baby!!
NBC should have just pulled Perfect Harmony along with it.
You could tell NBC wanted Perfect Harmony to succeed more due it being sandwiched between Superstore and The Good Place. I would be surprised if Perfect Harmony gets pulled before its initial episode count.
So? They are replacing one cancelled show with .. another cancelled show? I thought it was hilarious and I love Will and Grace but it’s run into the ground and it was fun but even they know there’s no longevity in it…#SaveSunnyside it was great
It’s actually funny that some NBC exec thought Kal Penn could headline a show.
It’s even funnier when people use the word diverse to describe a show, thinking people would actually care.
Unless you have the goods nobody will watch and this ‘comedy’ was atrocious.
I guess the next question is, when will the next television exec give Kal Penn another series? Next season, or the season after? But he will get another series. And then another. Broadcast television.
Yes, the show was lame. Amazing diverse cast but stereotypical characters. Couldn’t make it through the second episode.
Unfortunately no one is surprised. This was a horrible horrible show that played to every stereotype.
Expected but unfortunate it seemed to finally be finding it’s stride
Seems that NBC sitcoms are dying, because these days, most of the sitcoms in NBC lasts first or second seasons. NBC sitcoms are not the same as used to be 10,15,20 or more years ago.
We’re all gonna feel old now that we realize The Office, 30 Rock, Parks and Rec, and Community were airing ten years ago.
And a lot of the current NBC comedies are written by the same people, only now they’re super-old and all used up.
Yet to me the funniest two sitcoms on TV today are on NBC: Superstore and The Good Place. They would be the two comedies that actually make me laugh out loud several times when I watch them. Other than the Goldbergs all other sitcoms amuse me but don’t make me actually laugh.
This comment has been made so many times for the last 10, 15, 20 years. Oy.
I had high hopes with Michael Schur as EP, but I just couldn’t get into it. I hoped it would be like Parks & Rec where it started out a little slow & then got awesome. I guess it won’t get a chance to see where it would go. I do think it’s good for NBC to make them available online since that doesn’t always happen for cancellations. For people who were digging it, that’s nice for them.
Didn’t even have any interest in this
I wouldn’t call it a cancellation quite yet. NBC said this show has fared better online and is airing the show online (even added an episode), sounds similar to AP Bio. Let’s wait and see how these 11 episodes do before pulling out the “cancelled” word yet.
It was not funny. The Asian siblings as portrayed were throughly unlikable.
It was a little rough out of the gate, but I thought it was getting better. It had a terrible title, but I did like the cast.