Is AP Bio renewed for a season 3, canceled? Behind NBC’s decision
As of right now, the bad news is that these two episodes are going to serve as the series finale — hopefully, it ties up some of the show’s larger loose ends, given that there may not be an opportunity to see more in the future. NBC canceled the comedy earlier this year, citing the same reason why they cancel the majority of the stuff that they cancel — low ratings. The show just isn’t pulling in numbers in terms of live viewing. For season 2, it averaged overall a 0.5 rating in the 18-49 demographic and then slightly less than 2 million viewers.
Here’s the caveat – These are live ratings and one of the things that we figured out over time with this show is that the majority of its viewers were not necessarily interested in watching it live. That wasn’t some sort of slam on its overall quality, but rather a reminder that a lot of people out there in 2019 want to watch things on their own terms. We think it’s true even more so with comedies — they can either stream them or DVR them and watch them at their leisure. It shaves off a few minutes to watch them this way, and it also gives the viewer their own space to enjoy. Think about it — comedy’s become so much more split off the past few decades, and there are fewer and fewer shows that appeal to the majority of viewers. The perception of comedy is so much more personalized then ever before and through that, it’s harder to get the majority of people watching any one thing.
We know that there is a #SaveAPBio movement still going, one that is supported by cast member Glenn Howerton and executive producer Mike O’Brien. Are possible buyers listening? We think so. Hulu still feels like a perfect home for this show given their broad lineup of comedy already, and also their need for some more series with some big-name stars. We don’t think that the live ratings are good enough to really shift over to somewhere else on live TV, so a streaming provider really seems to be the best possible option. Netflix, in theory, could be a place it could land especially with so many of their other big comedies ending including Santa Clarita Diet, The Ranch and Fuller House. We know that they’ve done well streaming many shows that originally aired over on NBC — not only that, but they found themselves an enormous streaming hit in Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, which was originally an NBC pilot.
While we’re not overly optimistic about AP Bio and its season 3 prospects elsewhere (there hasn’t been a single show to be “saved” by another network/streaming provider this season), never say never. We’ll see what the finale ratings are and who is enthusiastic about the show’s future.
Do you want to see an AP Bio season 3 renewal happen over at NBC? Be sure to share in the comments below. (Photo: NBC.)