Peacock Cancels Two Fan-Favorite Series
Peacock has canceled the shows Vampire Academy and One of Us Is Lying after both allegedly failed to find a wide audience.
Two popular young adult series have been scrapped by Peacock. Vampire Academy and One of Us Is Lying have both been canceled after one and two seasons, respectively. According to Deadline, executives at the streamer were happy with the creativity of both shows. But they failed to find a requisite audience to justify more episodes.
Based on the six novels of the same name by Richelle Mead, Vampire Academy was adapted for Peacock by Julie Plec and Marguerite MacIntyre. Unlike the 2014 film, the show used the source material as inspiration for the series instead of an exact retelling. Produced by Universal Television, the series stars Sisi Stringer, Daniela Nieves, Kieron Moore, and André Dae Kim.
Set in a glamorous world of privilege, the axed Peacock series focuses on Rose Hathaway and Daniela Nieves, whose friendship transcends their strikingly different classes. The story chronicles their education and preparation to enter the royal vampire society. Combining elegance, romance, and the supernatural thrills of the vampire genre, Vampire Academy was given a straight-to-series order in May 2021.
Based on the 2017 novel by Karen M. McManus, One of Us Is Lying premiered in October 2021. It was the first Peacock pilot to go straight to series. The story follows five high school students who are suspected of murder after one of them dies under suspicious circumstances during detention. The series was renewed for a second season that aired in October 2022.
The series was adapted for Peacock by Erica Saleh, who wrote the pilot script. She later took on showrunner duties after Darío Madrona exited the role after Season 2. One of Us Is Lying was broadcast as a Netflix exclusive in several international markets, including in the United Kingdom, India, South Korea, Brazil, and Japan.
The now-defunct Peacock series featured Mark McKenna as Simon, the deceased student. Annalisa Cochrane, Chibuikem Uche, Marianly Tejada, and Cooper van Grootel starred as the main suspects. Barrett Carnahan, Jessica McLeod, Melissa Collazo, Sara Thompson, and Alimi Ballard appear in supporting roles.
The cancellations at Peacock come as the streamer moves into its next phase of development. The streamer recently launched Best Man: The Final Chapters, which has done well with viewers. The mystery series Poker Face from Rian Johnson and starring Natasha Lyonne is also coming up. The network also debuted the true-crime mockumentary miniseries, Paul T. Goldman.
Additionally, Julie Plec is developing a new series called Freeman for Peacock along with Vampire Academy co-executive producer Adam Starks. Billed as a mystery drama, the story takes place in a small, picturesque Georgia town. A contemporary horror thriller based on the 1988 Robert McCammon novel, Stinger is coming soon too. The series will be written by Ian McCulloch and James Wan.
Peacock will also launch Based On a True Story, a comedy thriller created by Craig Rosenberg and Jason Bateman, later this year. The series stars Kaley Cuoco as Ava Bartlett and Chris Messina as Nathan. Meanwhile, the cancellation of Vampire Academy and One of Us Is Lying will come as a shock to fans. It remains to be seen if the series will be shopped to other networks.
