The Best Sketch Comedy Series Has Been Canceled
The CW has officially canceled Whose Line Is It Anyway.
This article is more than 2 years old
The CW is all but purging its entire lineup since being absorbed by Nexstar Media Group, and now it has been announced by Colin Mochrie that the long-standing sketch comedy show, Whose Line Is It Anyway?, has officially been canceled. The comedy show joins the likes of Stargirl, The Flash, Riverdale, and Nancy Drew are all ending their runs on the network. We also reported that both The Winchesters and Walker are also on the list of shows not receiving back-order episodes.
Whose Line Is It Anyway? has been on the air for quite a long time, as the initial series aired on ABC and ABC family back in 1998. The series would run from 1998 to 2007 before it was ultimately canceled, and then revived by The CW in 2013. The initial show was based on a British series of the same name and saw comedian Drew Carey hosting while bringing on many improv comedians to engage in on-the-spot sketches with each other and audience members.
Eventually, Drew Carey left Whose Lines Is It Anyway? to pursue an even more lucrative deal as the host of The Price is Right. Carey’s exit ultimately led to the show being canceled, before it was brought back with Aisha Tyler as the new host, bringing back series regulars: Colin Mochrie, Wayne Brady, Ryan Stiles, Greg Proops, and many more. The sketch comedy show will receive one final season on the network, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be received someplace else.
Nexstar Media purchased The CW and is clearly making it known that the network is going to be revamped completely. Most of the superhero lineup has already been canceled or is receiving one final season, and the same goes for Whose Line Is It Anyway?, which is set to receive a final season. That is not to mention that plenty of employees at the network have also been laid off after longtime CEO Mark Pedowitz stepped away from the network.
Whose Line Is It Anyway? is just another show on the long list of shows that are now being canceled as media companies are beginning to absorb one another. Nexstar purchasing The CW follows Warner Bros. Discovery, which also merged and has enacted its own wave of cancellations. There is no telling what The CW is going to be turned into, but it appears as if an entire overhaul of the network is going to be happening in the coming months.
Whose Line Is It Anyway? has not appeared on any streaming services, apart from the current 2013 revival on HBO Max, so one good thing about this cancelation could mean another network picking up the series in the future. This could lead to the sketch comedy series having its entire catalog somewhere to stream, which would be great, though this is just speculation at this point. The sketch comedy series has been around for a long time and has droves of fans, including those who attend the live shows that are put on by the long-standing performers.
Though Whose Line Is It Anyway? is ending on The CW, we would imagine it is popular enough to get picked up by another network. Netflix had better step in quickly, as the sketch comedy series is still the best around and deserves another shot somewhere else.
