FOX has thrown away the key on Alcatraz. The J.J. Abrams thriller has been cancelled after one season and 13 episodes.
Alcatraz follows the investigations of police detective Rebecca Madsen (Sarah Jones) and Doctor Diego Soto (Jorge Garcia). They work to uncover how 340 inmates and guards disappeared from the infamous prison in 1963 and why they’re now reappearing looking just the same. The show also features the talents of Jonny Coyne, Parminder Nagra, Jason Butler Harner, and Sam Neill.
Fueled by a lot of promotion, the TV series was launched in January and drew good reviews and strong numbers. The two-hour premiere attracted a 3.3 rating in the all-important 18-49 demographic with 10.05 million total viewers. Opposite some tough competition from CBS, Alcatraz was in second place in its timeslots.
In week two, the demo slipped 9% to a still respectable 3.0 rating with 9.03 million. Week three dropped another 7%. That wasn’t positive but not horrible either but the ratings just kept falling.
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In February, NBC launched season two of The Voice and Alcaraz’s ratings took a big dive. They ropped 18% on February 6th and then another 17% on the 13th. The numbers just kept falling after that.
The two-hour season (now series) finale was in fourth place in the timeslots and averaged a disappointing 1.6 demo rating with 4.76 million total viewers.
The first season of Alcatraz ended up averaging a 2.2 demo rating with 6.74 million viewers — and those numbers would have dropped lower had there been more episodes.
On our FOX report card — which ranks the network’s shows based on demo averages — Alcatraz has a “C” and that just wasn’t good enough to get a renewal.
FOX chose to keep Touch instead but the network stays in business with producer J.J. Abrams via the network’s Fringe renewal.
What happened? It would seem that Alcatraz just wasn’t compelling enough to keep viewers returning week after week. Plus, for the first time in quite awhile, all three of the major networks had really strong programming on Monday nights. Two of the competing shows — The Voice and Dancing with the Stars — are reality competitions and many viewers feel compelled to watch them “live” rather than catch them online or via DVR recordings.
All 13 episodes of Alcatraz have aired and the last episode left viewers wondering what would happen next. Unless the producers decide to share what they had in mind for season two, we’ll never know the answers to the show’s mysteries.
What do you think? Why do you think Alcatraz failed to hold onto a bigger audience? Did FOX make a mistake by cancelling the series? What will you miss about it?
Loved this show! Why not change the time slot or day if it was going up against The Voice and Dancing with the Stars? Give it a second chance Fox 🙁
really annoyed to watch tv series that have no endings… do not plan years lasting series if you are not sure to give them a finale
it is really rude and disrespectful towards audience
from now on, I will start watching at series just when they will enter at least season 4…
Alcatraz was a very cool show that could have worked for at least several years if they’d given it the chance. Boo-hoo, fourth place for a newbie show. Fourth place seems good to me. Plus the fact that they still aren’t really getting proper statistics on what people are watching. I am extremely disappointed in Fox.
The fail of the show was that it should never be a serie, all the episodes are the same and there is not progression of the main plot in almost all the episodes, i stop watching on episode 6, it gets boring. sarah jones its a really bad actress.
From the start this should have been a movie or a short serie of few episodes, how many inmmates can you liberate before it gets stuck in the same episode??? apparently 13 is the number.
again, the main fail here was that the plot wasn’t enough for a big show.
Distinctly gutted that this show has been cancelled. I’ve just caught up on all the episodes in one big weekend bender and now to no avail, we’ll never know why they were coming back and how..
This is almost as much of a let down as the ending of Lost.
It failed because you put on shows that you probly knew would get better raitings. But not showing the 2nd season is a little bit rude. I mean why just stop it where they find one of the main people?? It will want people to watch it again just to find out the “Big Mistery” but they cant. I think you should have the 2nd season play no matter what because truth is people will watch it no matter how small that group is.
Miscasting I think, good idea that did not take off I could not believe the female in the lead role she looked far to young for the part she was playing.
Alcatraz is far better than touch!!!
At least make some kind of follow up to let us know who/what was behind the disappearance and reappearance! Plus the season finale was left on such a cliffhanger, will Rebecca be okay? I’m so upset Alcatraz is cancelled after just one season!
Fox is sick channel
i hope this channel is cancelled too
Getting tired of watching stuff that has no ending
i will blow this channel if don’t do a second season of alcatraz
They get their hooks into you, then leave you dangling when they cancel a show without giving the fans who watched it weekly, a decent finale.
It’s because of this, I think from now on, until a show enters season 2, I don’t think I’ll waste my time watching it. Especially with FOX. Getting tired of watching stuff that has no ending.
I cannot believe they cancelled this show!!!!!!!!! who decides this … what a butt head… fire that person… !!!
Stupid how can u end a series half way through and there is probably alot more viewers just they watched it recorded like me because I’m busy when it’s usually on disgraceful shame on fox
Cannot believe ditching Alcatraz brilliant series well acted with an outstanding cast have not missed an episode of this intriging story line. And to leave it up in the air is very disappointing.
SO UPSET ABOUT THIS!!!! GREAT SHOW PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE BRING IT BACK!!!!
I am upset too!!!!!!!! Bring it back!!!!!!
Cancelling Alcatraz? I will never watch Fox again. Get me hooked on a show with good actors and something different besides stupid reality shows then canceled it? You choice to cancel – my choice not to watch your network again.