Oxygen finally cancels ‘The Glee Project,’ and we salute a great competition show

This was the news that many of you probably saw coming, ever since there were first reports months ago that “The Glee Project” was ending. After weeks upon weeks of debate following season 2’s low-rated outing, Oxygen made the announcement today to not bring the casting-themed reality show back for another run. The network had the following to say on the subject:

“The Glee Project will not be returning to Oxygen, but we are extremely proud of this series which launched the careers of several talented individuals … The show had so much heart and we thank Ryan Murphy and all of the creative talent who helped make the series a critical darling.”

It was inevitable that “The Glee Project” would never have a long life on TV, given that it was so tied to the flagship series, and the ratings for it had been falling for some time. Oxygen never really felt like the perfect fit for the show to begin with, given that their audience is not so much the same as the average “Glee” viewer, and it is even owned by a different parent company than Fox. With the ratings for “Glee” falling, it was only going to sustain so long.

With all of this being said, what an interesting and refreshing series this was, and at times it was even better than “Glee.” You had the closest thing to a peek into casting that we’ve really ever had on TV; you can be a great actor and still not get the part, and it can be due to everything from personality to professionalism to not even having the right fit for the show. It’s all very subjective, and it can change in the blink of an eye.

With all of this being said, we probably would not have issued this statement this week, given that it is already a sad enough time for the “Glee” franchise. There is still no word on when production on season 5 will begin following the death of Cory Monteith, and if it will lead to a delay in the premiere airing.

Photo: Oxygen