Deadwood: The HBO Series Will Return, Sort Of
Can fans save a show? Well, if they act quickly, try hard enough, and use financial pressure, the answer seems to be “Yes!” When it was announced that HBO would we cutting the wild-west Deadwood series short after three seasons, fans of the HBO series got, well, downright ornery! They signed petitions, took out an ad in Variety (a Hollywood trade paper), sent letters and made calls indicating that they would cancel their HBO subscriptions at the end of Deadwood’s third season (which recently started airing).
As a result, HBO and Deadwood creator David Milch have now come to an agreement. Deadwood will return following the third season… sort-of. Rather than a full-blown 12-episode season to complete the series (which would have been quite costly and now, very difficult to coordinate), HBO and Milch will instead produce a pair of two-hour movies.
But wait, hadn’t HBO previously offered to pay for a six-episode fourth season? How is this better? Milch has said that he wasn’t in favor of doing a six-episode season because each episode of Deadwood has typically represented one day in the lives of the characters and South Dakota area. Shifting to two-hour movies will allow him to break that format and to be able to complete the storytelling he had for the final season. Milch has said that he’s thrilled that they worked out a way to continue Deadwood past the third season.
But what about the series actors that were released from their contracts over a month ago. Can HBO get them back? Though Deadwood cast members have not been signed for the movie projects as yet, it seems clear that HBO intends to do all it can to work out this aspect as well. One source has reported that HBO intends to “make it worth their while.” No doubt. Wouldn’t want to upset these fans . . . 
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Deadwood on DVD
April 3rd, 2007 at 12:15 pm
Bring back Deadwood and Rome. The two best shows on TV!!!!!!
March 31st, 2007 at 8:17 am
it is always so rare that a show comes along which captures our interest and desire for more like Deadwood.It’s always tough to see them end,but in this case the show is letting the viewers down by not giving us a fair and satisfying conclusion to a magnificent story.I’m sure it all comes down to the $$ like everything else so i guess we’re left out in the dark again. We all make mistakes and i believe that you have made a huge one here. Canada loved Deadwood….
March 30th, 2007 at 3:11 am
HBO - Deadwood = Wu’s Pigpen
March 27th, 2007 at 8:14 pm
I also agree it is rare to find “GOOD” shows on tv now days. I have fallen in love with this series, and am upset that it will no longer be on the air. What a disappointment to HBO. Once again they are letting us “The loyal Viewers” down.
March 25th, 2007 at 10:58 pm
hey, Paul, I think you’re confused. william randolph hearst, not george hearst, was one of the inspirations for Charles Foster Kane. Citizen Kane had absolutely nothing to do with the deadwood character. easy enough mistake to make, i suppose, since they are both historical figures, eh?
March 25th, 2007 at 4:46 am
This has been a great series,I hope HBO will decide to complete it.
March 24th, 2007 at 10:58 pm
the only reason i signed up for HBO was for the Sopranos… then deadwood came along. great! awesome show! carnival? too slow. nothing ever happened… ROME? AWESOME! now they HbO is cancelling that one too. Guess I’ll cancel my subscription. I’ll take my 12 bucks elsewhere….
March 24th, 2007 at 9:05 pm
Please don’t let this series be a flop . I don’t watch much TV, but I find the writing unique and takes me away from the stress of my work at least one day a week. This is great stuff, for adults. It’s the only reason I carry HBO when the series is run.
March 24th, 2007 at 11:30 am
No more Deadwood, No more HBO
subscription.
March 23rd, 2007 at 2:18 pm
I haven’t watched tv in 6 years.
I ordered Deadwood from netflix and I can watch the whole season at my own pace. I got tired of cancellation, commercials, and lousy shows picked by some brainless wonder. Cancel now! people have the power they just don’t use it. Why pay all that money for HBO? The movies are old and you cannot depend on the programming.
March 19th, 2007 at 10:41 pm
I love Deadwood and have waiting anxiously for it to come back on! I am very disappointed to hear that it has essentially been canceled. PLEASE! BRING IT BACK!
March 17th, 2007 at 10:22 am
For pity sake please at least wrap up the story lines before you cancel Deadwood. Everytime there is a Great show that takes a little concentration to understand it get cancelled!!!!!!!!!!! I have heard that George RR Martin’s Fire and Ice saga will be made into a series by HBO. If that is true please don’t bother. That would also be a great series but the subject matter is fantasy so I am sure it would be cancelled! It could not possiblly survive in a culture where I love New York and Celebrity Fit Club are considered fine viewing. Smarten up HBO. The only reason for my subscription is programs like Deadwood, Rome etc. Maybe it is time to cancell YOU!!
March 9th, 2007 at 4:16 pm
I simply cannot understand why this show is not considered the best ever ! F**k HBO,and F**k all the idiots of America for not watching !
February 19th, 2007 at 8:41 am
yOU FINNALY COME UP WITH A GOOD SHOW (DEADWOOD) AND YOU CANCEL IT WITH NO EXPLANTION. bRING IT BACK
February 3rd, 2007 at 6:34 pm
The Sopranos was a disappointment last year and all we really have to look forward to is DEADWOOD for 2007. Is HBO caving and ending the best show on premium channels because of pressures from the Religious Right or the FCC and their ridiculous rating standards? We spend well over $100 a month because of programs on HBO like Deadwood, Bill Maher, Carnivale, etc.
January 25th, 2007 at 12:25 pm
I can’t fathom why they cancell the best show on tv.
I so look forward to every episode and don’t want to see it end.
Someone at HBO should grow some brains and figure out how to keep Deadwood going.
Everybody I know watches the series .
Such a shame!
January 25th, 2007 at 11:54 am
i really loved to watch deadwood i love the word f**k and hbo f**king sucks for cutting the only show i looked forward to during the week without deadwood i really have no reason to continue subscribing to hbo
January 23rd, 2007 at 6:49 pm
As much as I love the show and as disappointed as I am with it being cancelled, I think it’s the perfect way for it to be. Specifically, it’s a top notch show going out on top, not slowly falling apart over a number of years with declining writing and forced storylines. Three seasons of memorable television (and the supposed movies) to be cherished via the box sets for years to come. Good job, HBO - now do it again!
January 13th, 2007 at 12:25 pm
I am a television producer and very rarely watch any kind of program with the exception of movies on DVD. After veiwing Deadwood at a friends house, I was instantly hooked. I have never seen a better job of writing. While the language may seem harsh to some, one must remember that this is an accurate depiction of the era. I can not believe that it has been cancelled! Let´s just shoot ourselves! Paramount did it with Firefly, another great series with tons of potential and now HBO. Just when I think there is hope for my artform!
January 4th, 2007 at 4:12 pm
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