‘Big Sky’ Canceled By ABC After 3 Seasons

ABC has canceled Big Sky after three seasons.

There’s no word on any current plans to develop a fourth season elsewhere. The series is just one of three ABC shows that were canceled on Friday, including Alaska Daily and The Company You Keep.

According to Deadline, producers did pitch a potential fourth season that was described as a “creative reboot” that would see creator David E. Kelley more involved.

The reason for the show’s cancellation would appear to be falling ratings. Season 3 is said to have been among the lowest this season for ABC’s scripted content. Additionally, there have been rumors of on-set drama and “challenging economics” that made developing a fourth season more difficult.

Based on the original book series by C.J. Box, Big Sky stars Katheryn Winnick and Kylie Bunbury. Season 3 was dubbed Big Sky: Deadly Trails and also starred Jamie-Lynn Sigler, J. Anthony Pena, Jensen Ackles, and Reba McEntire. Darius Rucker, Rosanna Arquette, and Lyle Lovett also made guest appearances in the third season.

Showrunner Elwood Reid previously spoke to TV Guide about the possibility of a fourth season.

“I think the thing that excited me about this season was calling it Deadly Trails and telling one story and then adding the crime of the week,” said Reid. “I think it’s a really successful formula for the show that we finally found. So the answer to that question is, we’ve got a lot of ideas. We’ve got one particularly fun, big storyline that involves a lot of our favorite characters… These characters are so fun, and this world that David [E.] Kelley created is really fun, so I’ve got tons of material to keep going if ABC wants us to do that.”

Reid, however, knew that the show could end with Season 3 and was asked by the network to develop a somewhat conclusive ending for the season, though leaving some unanswered questions was fine.

“ABC’s mandate was: ‘Satisfy the plot, but make sure we have emotional cliffhangers,'” he said. And I think we have done that and touched on those things: What does Reba’s character do? Where do Cormac and Cassie go in their relationship, [with] this guy whose mother is in jail and his father is a murderer? Where do weird Walter and Paige [Madalyn Horcher] go with their relationship? Where does Donno and Tonya’s relationship go? And of course, the very big end is, what’s up with Jenny and Beau? We were very deliberate with that.”

You can currently stream Big Sky on Hulu.