(Photo by: HBO)

While this HBO series has been moderately popular with viewers and critics, Perry Mason also draws relatively low ratings. On top of that, it’s been three years between seasons, so the cast’s contracts may have expired already. Will Perry Mason be cancelled or renewed for season three? Stay tuned. *Status Update Below.

A detective drama series, the Perry Mason TV show is a prequel that provides a reimagined origin story for the legendary criminal defense lawyer. The show stars Matthew Rhys, Juliet Rylance, Chris Chalk, Shea Whigham, Eric Lange, Justin Kirk, Diarra Kilpatrick, Katherine Waterston, Hope Davis, Fabrizio Guido, Peter Mendoza, Mark O’Brien, Paul Raci, Jen Tullock, Jon Chaffin, Onahoua Rodriguez, Jee Young Han, Sean Astin, Tommy Dewey, and Wallace Langham. Initially, Perry Mason (Rhys) is a low-rent private investigator who lives check-to-check in the 1930s. His wartime experiences in France haunt him, and he suffers the after-effects of a broken marriage. He eventually becomes an attorney. Della Street (Rylance) is his secretary, and former police officer Paul Drake (Chalk) is his lead detective. In the second season, months after the Dodson case has ended, the scion of a powerful oil family is brutally murdered. When the DA goes to the city’s Hoovervilles to pinpoint the most obvious of suspects, Perry, Della, and Paul find themselves at the center of a case that will uncover far-reaching conspiracies and force them to reckon with what it truly means to be guilty.

The ratings are typically the best indication of a show’s chances of staying on the air. The higher the ratings, the better the chances of survival. This chart will be updated as new ratings data becomes available.

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For comparisons: Season one of Perry Mason on HBO averaged a 0.03 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 328,000 viewers.

Note: These are the final national ratings, including all live+same day viewing and DVR playback (through 3:00 AM). Early fast affiliate ratings (estimates) are indicated with an “*”. While these numbers don’t include further delayed or streaming viewing, they are a very good indicator of how a show is performing, especially when compared to others on the same channel. Other economic factors can be involved in a show’s fate, but typically the higher-rated series are renewed and the lower-rated ones are cancelled.

What do you think? Do you like the Perry Mason TV series on HBO? Should it be cancelled or renewed for a third season?

*6/7/23 update: Perry Mason has been cancelled by HBO after two seasons.