(Alfonso Bresciani/USA Network)
USA Network continues to purge its schedule of scripted TV series and, appropriately enough, that includes The Purge. The anthology horror show has been cancelled and won’t be returning for a third season.
The Purge TV show stars Derek Luke, Max Martini, Paola Nunez, and Joel Allen. Based on the movie franchise by James DeMonaco, the drama unfolds in the United States, which is under totalitarian rule. The story centers on a 12-hour period during which all crimes, including murder, are legal. The second season explores how a single Purge night affects the lives of four interconnected characters over the course of the ensuing 364 days, all inevitably leading up to the next Purge.
The second season of The Purge averaged a 0.22 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 562,000 viewers. Compared to season one, that’s down by 46% and 48%, respectively. While that was a huge decline, the series was still USA’s second-highest-rated scripted series.
USA Network has been moving away from producing original scripted series while shifting toward more unscripted series and event-style scripted programming.
The Purge is the latest scripted series cancellation for USA. The channel also cancelled Treadstone today and dropped Dare Me a couple of weeks ago. This leaves only the fates of The Sinner and Briarpatch up in the air.
Queen of the South has been renewed for a fifth season and season two of Dirty John (which relocated from Lifetime) is set to launch on June 2nd.
What do you think? Did you enjoy The Purge TV series? Are you sorry to hear that there won’t be a third season?