Good news and bad news for fans of USA’s Monk TV show. The network has renewed it for an eight season but has also announced that there won’t be a ninth year of dysfunctional sleuthing.
Monk tells the tale of Adrian Monk (Tony Shalhoub), a brilliant San Francisco detective who, after the death of his wife in a car bombing, has a nervous breakdown. After being a recluse for three years, Monk returns to the force, barely able to control his obsessive-compulsive disorder. Monk’s many phobias make it difficult for him to function but, because he’s hyper-aware of the world around him, he’s an incredibly observant sleuth.
Though they’re often irritated by his disorder, Captain Leland Stottlemeyer (Ted Levine) and Lieutenant Randall “Randy” Disher (Jason Gray-Stanford) utilize Monk’s abilities when cases get tough. Monk is helped by assistant Sharona Fleming (Bitty Schram) and later by Natalie Teeger (Traylor Howard).
The TV show debuted on July 12, 2002 on the USA network. The show began as a modest success and grew its audience to an average of 6.1 million viewers in season six. This year’s episodes have been averaging five million viewers, 40% of which are from the desirable 18-49 demographic. The numbers are even more impressive when you consider that the series airs on Friday nights, a little-watched night of television.
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USA has renewed the series for an eighth season of 16 episodes but those will end the series. With the show’s viewership still growing, why finish it now? The decision to end the series is said to be a mutual one between all parties involved. Though they maintain that they want to end Monk while the show is still on top creatively, the reason for the cancellation comes down to dollars and cents. As the seasons have progressed, production costs have increased and the network likely finds it hard to justify episodes’ high pricetags.
USA’s Executive VP of Original Programming, Jeff Wachtel, assures that viewers won’t be disappointed by the final episodes. In a statement, he said, “Our fans have been extremely dedicated, and season eight should prove to be a very satisfying reward.” It’s rumored that the final episodes will bring the character full circle, centering around the killer of Monk’s beloved wife.
A special holiday episode of Monk is slated for November 28th and season seven episodes will continue in January 2009. Monk’s last 16 episodes are scheduled to begin airing sometime next summer. Stay tuned! 
NOOOO!!! I love Monk! It is totally THE best show on right now, possibly EVER. Seriously, I’ve seen every episode so far and really want it to continue… but i suppose it has to end sometime…. but still, it’s horrible that that time has come so soon!
Aw. I’ve seen every single episode so far and I adore this show. I never watch TV, since there’s nothing thats clean enough, funny enough, and/or interesting enough to bother watching. My entire family is dedicated to this show and we make comments in a lot of situations like, “Oh goodness what would Monk do about your room?! It’s a mess!”
How sad. But thanks to these guys for the well-thought ending to this. This shows their dedication to their fans rather than to their money. They could’ve pumped out crap for a few extra bucks, but they wanted to write a story, not make money.
Thank you for making the brave decision to end the show while we can still be proud to watch it.
While I’m disappointed in seeing the end of this show, it still has over 20 episodes to run, so there is ample time to enjoy it. Also, it will be interesting to see how the writers resolve things knowing that the show is coming to an end. It is better to know this fate in advance than to have a show cancelled without notice, which then leaves the viewer hanging. This is done regularly on the major networks. “Monk” has been a great show, but it is getting a little repetitive. It is probably a good time to end it… Read more »
I don’t think I will watch Monk in anything else as he is the Monk. I was in shock, he needs to be more loyal to his fans and still be the best show on TV. I love all the people on the show.
I am very disappointed that Monk is ending. It was a great show and I have been totally dedicated to watching every episode. It’s smart, clean and creative. I watch very little TV, which is one reason I will miss this show so much. There is little else on the USA network, or television in general, that is worth watching these days. But, I guess I wouldn’t want actors to continue if they weren’t into it 100%. I’m sure that avid Monk viewers would easily notice if the acting or writing changed at all. Thanks for a great eight seasons.
Consider this. I just saw the last episode of Stargate Atlantis on the Sci-Fi network. While many of the episodes have been pretty lame,it was truly terrible. It insulted the viewers intelligence and was clearly written by someone either unskilled or just thrown together in a hurry,like student who put off a paper and starts writing it a few hours before class. A bad ending for a mediocre show. Be glad we have had years of high quality episodes of Monk,and that it will end the same way it ran,with the same high quality and good writing we have enjoyed… Read more »
I certainly would like to see a few Monk movies. I imagine the last season will end off with him finding his wife’s murderer and getting his job on the police force back. If he didn’t it would be a pretty bad ending. Honestly I was afraid of what would happen when these things eventually happened. You end up with the “Gilligans Island Syndrome”. Most shows (think for instance of Frasier) end up with people getting what they are striving for the whole series. After that there is one or perhaps two terrible final seasons. I see the point of… Read more »
Oh NO!!!! I am broken hearted. Monk is such a smart, smart, smart show….full of wonderful mental twists and turns. I remember the “Golden Age” of TV and the humor in Monk reminds me of that wonderful humor. Thank all the actors and behind the scenes folks for bringing this terrific show to us. But, do you think you all could come back for a few more years of shows???????? PLEEEEEEEASE……
Not since Columbo have I enjoyed a show so much. We watch the Office and Monk. There is so much crap out there.
I presume there will be the occasional made-for-tv monk movie.
I am extremely disappointed to learn that Monk will be ending after the 8th season. I watch TV on a very limited basis and Monk is one of three shows that I watch religiously. While nothing I say will change the outcome, I would like to say THANK YOU to the cast for a great run. I am annoyed by the growing amount of trash on TV and hate to see quality programming leave the airways. I would also like to say Thank You to those who have made this decision because after the 8th season I will be able… Read more »
I am appalled that this great show is ending. Finally something worth watching on TV (especially USA) and it’s going to be cancelled. Don’t you care at all how the fans feel?
Well, this is very disappointing news as Monk has been one of me and my wife’s “can’t miss” shows since the beginning. I realize we as fans can’t chain actors down if they’re hearts aren’t in it anymore and are also aware that our favorite shows can’t go on forever, but this is still a big letdown considering how different and quirky Monk is compared to the countless crime dramas and dumb reality shows that clog the airwaves nowadays. And that 93% saying “No, it’s a great show” in the poll at the top of this page speaks volumes on… Read more »
Oh, no! Say this isn’t true! There is a dearth of quality TV and “Monk” is world-class – it has no equal. If the issue is production costs, why not sell it to one of the networks. I cannot imagine that the cast is tired of it or that the show is running out of episode plots. “Frazier” ran 11 seasons and it was still going strong when the show ended. Monk is certainly in that class and could keep going more seasons. After mourning the end of “Boston Legal” I cannot bear to think of Monk ending. That said,… Read more »