I Love That For You Canceled After One Season
Vanessa Bayer's acclaimed comedy I Love That for You has been canceled at Showtime.
Showtime canceled the comedy series I Love That for You after just one season. Created by Vanessa Bayer and Jeremy Beiler, the story featured Bayer as Joanna Gold, an aspiring shopping channel host who pretends that her childhood cancer has returned to keep her job. The premise is inspired by Bayer’s real-life experience with childhood leukemia.
“I Love That for You has completed its run on Showtime,” a network spokesperson said via Deadline. “We want to thank Vanessa, Jeremy, and Jessi, along with the incredible cast and crew, for their hard work and wish them the best going forward.” The first season of the defunct series consisted of eight episodes which were well-received by critics and viewers.
I Love That for You currently holds an 81 percent critic score alongside an audience rating of an equally impressive 85 percent. The site’s general consensus states that while the comedy may suffer from tonal inconsistency and a loosely defined ensemble, it successfully serves as a long-awaited platform for showcasing Vanessa Bayer’s talent.
As such, there have been several efforts to get I Love That for You renewed. One of the series stars, Matt Rogers, previously stated that a second season had already been written. Annapurna, the company behind the project, plans to shop the series to other networks and streaming platforms.
Showtime has expressed its support for the move.
Along with Vanessa Bayer as Joanna Gold, I Love That for You featured Molly Shannon as Jackie Stilton, Paul James as Jordan Wahl, Ayden Mayeri as Beth Ann McGann, Matt Rogers as Darcy Leeds, Punam Patel as Beena Patel, and Jenifer Lewis as Patricia Cochran. Matt Malloy, Michelle Noh, Bess Armstrong, Jason Schwartzman, and Johnno Wilson appeared in recurring roles.
I Love That for You is one of many Showtime series to face cancellation in recent months. Although it was the only comedy series on the Paramount-owned network (until it picked up the canceled Neil Patrick Harris series Uncoupled), the axing of the popular show aligns with the network’s ongoing trend of brutally declining renewals.
The only notable exception is Yellowjackets, starring Christina Ricci, Melanie Lynskey, Juliette Lewis, and Sophie Thatcher, which was renewed for a third season in December 2022.
The rejections come under the leadership of Chris McCarthy, who took over from longtime CEO David Nevins. Other shows to be scrapped include, Let the Right One In, American Gigolo, and The L Word: Generation Q.
Additionally, the cancellation of I Love That for You follows Paramount+’s new programming strategy. McCarthy has pledged that the network will prioritize shows with high-stakes worlds (like Homeland and Billions), complex characters and subversive antiheroes (like Dexter and Your Honor,) culturally diverse series (like Fellow Travelers and The Chi), and the development of spinoff series to build franchises.
The axing of I Love That for You will be a blow for Vanessa Polster Bayer. Known for her work on the long-running sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live, the series served to showcase the actress in a leading role. Bayer previously appeared in shows like Portlandia, Drunk History, and Curb Your Enthusiasm.
In the film, Bayer has been featured in movies such as Trainwreck and Office Christmas Party. Her comedic style is characterized by her knack for physical comedy, her ability to embody eccentric characters, and her talent for delivering sharp and witty punch lines. She is widely regarded as a talented and versatile comedian with a bright future.
