Starz has axed three existing drama series and one upcoming project.
The network has binned Heels, Run The World and Blindspotting as well as not moving forward with The Venery of Samantha Bird.
Heels, Run The World and Blindspotting all aired two seasons and The Venery of Samantha Bird paused production in May due to the strikes with two episodes left to film.
Heels revolves around the men and women who chase their dreams in the world of small-town pro wrestling. Set in a close-knit Georgia community, it follows a family-owned wrestling promotion as two brothers and rivals (Stephen Amell and Alexander Ludwig) war over their late father’s legacy. In the ring, somebody must play the good guy and somebody must play their nemesis, the heel. But in the real world, those characters can be hard to live up to — or hard to leave behind.
Alison Luff, Mary McCormack, Kelli Berglund, Allen Maldonado, James Harrison, Roxton Garcia and Chris Bauer also star in the series produced by Lionsgate in association with Paramount Network Television.
Created, written and executive produced by Leigh Davenport, Run the World follows a group of smart, funny, and vibrant thirty-something Black women – fiercely loyal best friends – who live, work and play in Harlem. As they strive for world domination, they each navigate career highs and lows, hookups and heartbreaks that causes them to re-evaluate who they are and where they are going. At its core, it’s an authentic and unapologetic show about enviable friendship and not only surviving – but thriving together.
Amber Stevens West, Andrea Bordeaux, Bresha Webb and Corbin Reid star alongside Stephen Bishop and Tosin Morohunfola. Erika Alexander, Nick Sagar, Jay Walker and Tonya Pinkins guest starred in season one.
From Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs, Blindspotting centers on Ashley (Jasmine Cephas Jones), who was nipping at the heels of a middle-class life in Oakland until Miles (Casal), her partner of 12 years and father of their son, Sean (Atticus Woodward) was suddenly incarcerated, leaving her to navigate a chaotic life when she is forced to move in with Miles’ mother, Rainey (Helen Hunt), and sister, Trish (Jaylen Barron).
In addition to co-creating the series, Casal and Diggs both serve as executive producers and writers with Casal also serving as showrunner and director of four episodes. Jess Wu Calder and Keith Calder of Snoot Entertainment, Emily Gerson Saines, Ken Lee, and Tim Palen also serve as executive producers, with Wu Calder also directing two episodes in season two. Lionsgate produced.
The Venery of Samantha Bird. stars Katherine Langford in the title role and was created by Anna Moriarty.
It follows Samantha Bird, who, while visiting family in New England, Samantha Bird reconnects with her childhood sweetheart and falls headlong into a seemingly perfect storybook romance. But underneath their fever dream lurks a more unsettling interpretation of this affair. The series is described as a haunting portrayal of addictive love and the repercussions that a relationship has on the families in a small New England town.
Finn Jones, Embeth Davidtz, Francesca Reale, Brenda Strong, Adam Faison, Shalini Bathina and Tyrone Marshall Brown also star.
Moriarty also serves as executive producer. Salvatore Stabile (Waco) is showrunner and executive producer. Jessica Rhoades (Station Eleven) executive produces through her Pacesetter Productions shingle, Larysa Kondracki is exec producer and Rachel Polan serving as co-executive producer.
The series is produced by Lionsgate Television and Paramount Television Studios.
Variety first reported the news.
