Critical favorite 'Hannibal' canceled after three seasons by NBC
The network and executive producer Bryan Fuller announced on Monday that the series will not be renewed for a fourth season. The series will finish its Season 3 run on Thursdays at 10 p.m.
"NBC has allowed us to craft a television series that no other broadcast network would have dared, and kept us on the air for three seasons despite Cancellation Bear Chow ratings and images that would have shredded the eyeballs of lesser Standards & Practices enforcers," Fuller said in a statement. "[Entertainment president] Jen Salke and her team have been fantastic partners and creatively supportive beyond measure. 'Hannibal' is finishing his last course at NBC's table this summer, but a hungry cannibal can always dine again. And personally, I look forward to my next meal with NBC."
NBC added: "We have been tremendously proud of 'Hannibal' over its three seasons. Bryan and his team of writers and producers, as well as our incredible actors, have brought a visual palette of storytelling that has been second to none in all of television - broadcast or cable. We thank Gaumont and everyone involved in the show for their tireless efforts that have made 'Hannibal' an incredible experience for audiences around the world."
The series returned on June 4 and over its three subsequent episodes has only averaged 1.98 million viewers and a very low .57 rating in the advertiser-coveted 18-49-year-old demographic, according to Nielsen.
Taking place before the events of 1991 film "Silence of the Lambs," "Hannibal" was based on characters from the Thomas Harris novel, "Red Dragon."
"Hannibal"starred Hugh Dancy as FBI Special Agent Will Graham, a crime scene investigator with a special understanding of murderers and psychopaths, and Mad Mikkelsen as Lecter, a forensic psychiatrist with a hunger for human flesh who will become Graham's biggest challenge.