As viewers are no doubt aware by now, ABC has decided to cancel their Forever TV show after one season of 22 episodes. Series star Ioan Gruffudd took to Instagram to send a message to the show’s loyal viewers.
He wrote:
My dear friends, fans, supporters.
Tonight, as you all now know, I received a phone call that I was hoping not to receive, and to be honest I really wasn’t expecting it. I knew the numbers hadn’t been great, but I also knew the studio and the network both loved the show, and of course that it had an incredible fan base…so I thought we were in with a pretty good chance.
But sadly no, this time the cards weren’t dealt in our favor. Show business is like that. Hell, life is like that. You ride to the top of the wave and then you come crashing down again. I asked Alice to send out the sad news because I was a little bit shaken up and needed time to gather my thoughts.
So I sat down and started reading the thousands of Tweets in response to the announcement. And the more I read, the more I couldn’t believe it. The love, the sense of solidarity, the hope, the kindness, the support. Not just for the show, but for each other. And slowly I began to focus on what we had gained in the past year, rather than what we had lost in the last five minutes. I was overcome by a sense of gratitude. To have met you all and to have you all rooting for me and the show. At having a chance to play the role of my dreams, even if it was only for a year. To have been given the chance to bring Henry to life.
Watching the interaction of the FOREVER fans come together and share their love for the show has been breath-taking. It was you guys who held me up when I thought I could no longer go on. (Those days were LONG!) You made me smile when you pointed out the little things I did on screen that I thought had gone unnoticed. You gave me confidence when I accidentally found myself reading less than shining reviews. You were always with me, every step of the way, waving your flags, shouting your support for the show. It’s been an incredible, wonderful year, one that I will never, ever forget.
And guess what? The memories belong to us. We get to keep them ‘forever!’ Thanks again a million times for your unwavering support. Stay strong, be brave, and show kindness as often as you can!
Ioan xxx
What do you think? What do you think of Gruffudd’s message? Why do you think Forever has such a passionate viewership yet the ratings weren’t very good?
I still cant believe this show is cancelled. I just watched the entire season again, and there are so many unanswered questions, and directions this show should be allowed to explore. I feel the ratings you drive your decisions are flawed. The fact they had a mistake and had to recalculate the ratings even more show that perhaps you should re-look at the information and how it was gathered. I know we have watched every season episode at least twice and maybe more. The characters are great. You really have to be kidding on which ones you saved, and which… Read more »
What a fantastic show, Welsh man playing lead fantastic.Sadly another good show gone back to crap tv
Join the #SaveForever movement on Twitter together we can save our show
What I enjoyed was the relationship between the characters. Henry, Abe and Jo. The supporting cast deserves cudos as well. I never get this emotional about TV, since most of what is considered entertainment. Scandal, How to Get Away with Murder have the same inane plot, Sex, Murder, Deceit, Mayhem and really dumb women who compromise thier dignity week after tedious week. Forever is an amazing story, discussing the very dignity of life, love found and lost and rediscovered again for Henry and Jo. I felt as if I knew them personally. That is a mark of great writing and… Read more »
Finally a show that is interesting, fun, intriguing, not really violent, not mushy or silly stupid and it gets cancelled. While they leave the rest of the drek on the air. The acting was good and you could easily get lost in the life of Dr. Henry Morgan. I’m very sad as I don’t find many shows interesting anymore. Cant cable pick it up? Please try, don’t give up.
I am 57 and this has been my favorite show of the tear. I love Henry. I think John is great. The stories are interesting. Now I am so disappointed that we will not be able to see how the dynamics change when John learns Henry’s secret. I just could hardly wait for that to happen. I just can’t believe it is ending like this. There is so much h more to see.
Shop another network. ABC obviously has no clue what is good and what is bad. I know it’s a business, but quality television is hard to find. Another network will pick the show up!!
FYI, I am in the 18-49 age group and I love Forever. Not all of us ‘younguns’ are interested as Henry said in “Guns, zombies, “thrilling” chases and idiotic sit-coms”, ok maybe a good chase scene occasionally, but not the zombies, vampires, undead and idiotic sit-coms (all of which should be truly dead).
Im not happy this show got cancelled as I liked it and hope someone else takes this up ..not happy we liked it here in uk..
I’m sorry you had to go. Marketers are like that, even at the grocer store where I find a favorite brand gone because not enough of us bought it. Forever was interesting, I think, because humans are finite, and we’d secretly like to live a lot longer than we do. Mythology is replete with eternal life, from the Christian’s Heaven to the Elves of Lord of the Rings. But as you said, Ioan, we have a secret weapon that defies time: Memory. Thanks for the memories.
TV producers must start to understand that TV programing is not limited to the 18-49 year old group. There are many among the population that enjoy thought provoking and intelligent programs. Guns, zombies, “thrilling” chases and idiotic sit-coms do not satisfy adult viewing, showing us that the most popular shows are on HBO and other “pay-for-view” channels.
It was an intelligent show, so of course it got cancelled. I’m so tired of the 18-49 year olds dictating what I watch on TV…………………..and news flash to the advertisers, that “group” you cater to (particularly the 18-22 year old range), they don’t have any money to spend!!
Help try to persuade Warner Bros and ABC to keep Forever!
https://www.change.org/p/warner-brothers-warner-brothers-fans-love-the-tv-show-forever
It’s unfortunate that the network chose to cancel a show that was clearly interesting and fun. There was nothing more fun to watch than Henry pronouncing something and a minute later Hanson would come in with his scoop and realize that he was late to the party. From everything I’ve read there was a drop off in viewers by the end but when you went weeks without seeing it, it’s easy to loose it. I’m at a loss as to why the network seems to think it’s the fault of the show. Right now the studio is looking at replacements… Read more »
Truly enjoyed “Forever” and very sad that it has been cancelled. Wonderful characters and unique story lines. I feel that the ratings would have been much better had viewers been able to consistently/weekly locate it on TV. I, too, hope another network picks up this deserving series.