Though it was promoted ad nauseum during the coverage of the Summer Olympics, NBC could find few friends for their My Own Worst Enemy series. The TV show has been cancelled after airing just four episodes.
My Own Worst Enemy follows the strange life of Henry Spivey (Christian Slater), a hum-drum suburbanite with a wife and two kids (played by Madchen Amick, Taylor Lautner, and Bella Thorne). Unknown to Henry and his loved ones, he has a dual identity as a secret operative and trained killer named Edward Albright.
Edward works for a superspy organization under supervisor Mavis Heller (Alfre Woodard) and is partnered with friend and fellow operative Tom Grady/Raymond Carter (Mike O’Malley). Others in the series include Omid Abtahi, Saffron Burrows, James Cromwell, Sarai Givaty, Mark Ivanir, Mindy Sterling, Missy Yager, Eugenia Yuan, and Louis Giambalvo.
The show debuted on October 13, 2008 on NBC. Despite a lot of high-profile promotion, the premiere attracted only 7.27 million viewers and a 3.0/8 rating/share in the 18-49 demographic. The following week, the numbers dropped to 5.69 million and a 2.6/6. The most recent episode hit a low of 4.27 million and 1.8/5. Though Heroes has been struggling this season, Worst Enemy has been losing over 40% of its lead-in audience and more than that in the key demographic.
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NBC has announced that they are cancelling the series following the completion of its ninth episode. It’s been confirmed that the network plans to continue to air the series until all of the episodes have been shown.
If Worst Enemy goes uninterrupted, the series finale should air on December 15th, the same night as Heroes’ so-called “fall finale.” Because of the abrupt cancellation, fans of Worst Enemy aren’t expected to be given any kind of conclusion to the show’s ongoing storylines. That’s enough to make even mild-mannered Henry angry. Stay tuned! 
Image courtesy NBC.
I love this show. Please don’t cancel it. It’s exciting and suspensful and I look forward to watching it weekly. Please reconsider and bring it back.
WHY, WHY, WHY,are you cancelling this show????? I record mine on my digital recorder and watch it later. The tv is usually on another station when that is happening. Or I record two shows at a time. How do you know what I’m watching, or millions of others. Your rating system is to old and unaccurate. This is a really good show, and Christian Slater is a great actor. WHAT ARE YOU THINKING??????? GIVE IT MORE TIME OR SWITCH IT TO A DIFFERENT NIGHT. This is a big mistake. Fire the exec’s that are making these horrible decisions……….. signed P*ssed… Read more »
I agree with Sue – it is fascinating to watch Christian Slater change between Henry and Edward. And it must be enormously challenging for him and all the actors to oscillate back and forth as that change happens. That’s the real shame, that the show is deemed a failure after all that great and difficult artistry.
At lease we can rely on HBO to keep a show for a FULL season and allow it the time it needs to devolp the storyline and charactors !!!! I’ll gladly pay HBO my $12 per month so networks can’t yank my chain. 🙂
I’ve heard there has been a sizable loss of TV audience since the writers strike (17%?). Have the networks learned anything? Why should we the viewier emotionally invest ourself in a show when it has a high chance of being cancelled without giving it the time it needs to mature and grow for a FULL season? Rediculous. Networks have unrealistic expectations and are making very poor business decsions. As a result, they are failing and unsure of what to do. Good. Perhaps they can go to congress and get a bail out too.
Come on NBC. keep this one on the air. who is the goof that canceled this show
Wow Another one bites the dust.. Valentine is gone. NBC cancels another great showin My Own Worst Enemy. It looks like Dirty Sexy Money and Lipstick Jungle will be cancelled too.
Oh, I am sure that’s what they’ll do, Jess; NBC being especially notorious for all the stupid, no-brain-required shows.
Figures. Once you get into a TV show that required more then half a brain they cancel it. So what will be replacing it? A reality serious about hot girls who get the biggest breast implants?
Ahhh come on !!!! Why is it that everytime I watch a show on this network it gets cancelled. I like this show give it a chance people there haven’t even been that many episode on!!
Come on give it a chance!!
Oooh I have an idea for a reality show that could maybe put NBC back in the running. We follow around the lives of 3 NBC executives as their shows all fail and their lives spiral out of control. It’s about life, learning, and the American dream…and running studios. It could give the American public the hope that, maybe one day, we, too, could each run our very own network. Cancelling My Own Worst Enemy was a terrible idea. It’s a great concept with a lot of potential. For reasons I don’t quite understand, advertisers still place way too much… Read more »
I love this show and am really sad to see it go. I love Christian Slater and this is just the type show that seems to fit his style. I really think NBC should give it another chance!!
i really think nbc is making mistake. this show is great. it makes you really think and some of us actually like to watch shows that make us think!!! we are not all interested in reality and cop shows………….try another time slot or better yet wait till boston legal and csi miami are over and try again…maybe one of those summer shows …….there are a lot of people who would like it given the chance to see it. nbc you really need to pull your head out and think about this one……..
This show gets better and better with each episode. I cant believe they are cancelling it! Did they even give it a chance? Can we contact the network? I LOVE watching Christian Slater volley between the two personalities! No too many actors can pull that off so well. Lets do what we can to save the show!