Not everything needs to be televised. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most notable shows that were taken off the air owing to some kind of backlash.
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00:00Kinsey and Michael have not done skating before, so they had a little challenge getting used to it.
00:07Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most notable shows that were taken off the air owing to some kind of backlash.
00:15Now I'll have to go... STAAAACK!
00:22Number 20. Flip It Forward. Canceled because of controversial beliefs.
00:27When the show was taken from us, our major concern right out of the gate was we have six families that came to us to learn how to flip houses. They purchased houses.
00:36David and Jason Benham are two conservative Christians from the southeastern U.S.
00:40After playing minor league baseball, the brothers became real estate agents and started their own company, attracting the attention of HGTV.
00:47They hoped to start a home improvement show with the brothers called Flip It Forward, but the project was canceled before it even got off the ground.
00:53He never wants to get his hands dirty.
00:55The progressive group People for the American Way made public a report condemning David Benham and his, quote, extremist views and actions.
01:03This includes making homophobic and anti-Muslim remarks, protesting outside abortion clinics, and trying to get same-sex marriage banned in North Carolina.
01:11HGTV canceled the Benham brothers' show the day after the report was published.
01:15But when this, uh, all of this media firestorm happened around some of my comments, it was just, it was too much for them to bear and they had to make a business decision.
01:24Number 19. All My Baby's Mamas. Canceled because of its premise.
01:28My, uh, show is about me and what's going on in my life for real.
01:33Another unaired show, All My Baby's Mamas was marketed as, quote, an intimate look at unconventional families with larger-than-life personalities. That's one way to put it.
01:42The show was basically gonna be about me showing how I deal with my 11 kids and my 10 baby mothers.
01:48The Oxygen series was going to follow the late rapper Shottie Lowe, who was the dad of 11 children by way of 10 different women.
01:55The basic premise was widely criticized, with some arguing that it fell into negative black stereotypes, while others claimed that it romanticized intimate relations with multiple partners.
02:05In short, no one was very happy with this one.
02:08A petition was immediately created to have the show canceled, and they got their wish when Oxygen decided to drop the program from production.
02:15Hello, hello, there you go, there you go, hello, hello, there you go, there you go.
02:22Number 18. Heathers. Canceled because of sensitive themes.
02:26Okay, I'm done. Let's just post it and get out of here.
02:28Not so fast. We have to take it from an angle so that it looks like a selfie.
02:34The cancellation of Heathers is a perfect and unbelievably sad symbol of the changing times.
02:39The Paramount show was a reboot of the 1989 film of the same name, which followed Veronica, the titular group of high school students,
02:46and an outcast who planned on killing popular students and destroying his school.
02:50What could be considered a black comedy in 1989 was unfortunately all too real in 2018.
02:56If the local police won't do their job and find this monster who's killing our children, then I will.
03:06The show was pushed back from its original U.S. air date following the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School attack in February,
03:11and canceled altogether after the Santa Fe High School incident in May.
03:15It finally aired on American TV following an international debut, but the episodes were heavily edited and condensed to account for its sensitive themes.
03:23There was never a season two.
03:26I'm about to save Westerburg.
03:43While it didn't last long, To Catch a Predator was enormously popular.
03:47Hosted by Chris Hansen, it saw adults posing as minors online,
03:51setting up a sting operation, and catching the titular predators who agreed to meet with the child.
03:56When said predator arrived at the predetermined location, they were met by Hansen, and usually arrested by law enforcement.
04:02Once he gets his clothes back on, he walks outside and is arrested by that camouflaged officer.
04:08Police, let him go!
04:09One of the show's targets was Louis Bill Conrad, an assistant district attorney who was exchanging lurid pictures with an undercover officer.
04:17He took his own life after police served him with a search warrant.
04:20The show's handling of the case was met with criticism, and Conrad's estate successfully sued NBC for an undisclosed sum.
04:27The show was canceled not long after.
04:29My family and I have experienced a great deal of hurt and sadness over this situation.
04:34And I intend to fight as hard and as long as I can to prevent other people from becoming victims of such reckless actions as those taken by your employees.
04:43PLAYMAKERS
04:44Canceled because of pressure from the NFL.
04:53In 2003, ESPN wanted to get into original dramatic programming.
04:57Enter PLAYMAKERS, which followed a fictional football team called the Cougars.
05:01The show was enormously successful for the network, becoming their highest rated program outside of college football and the NFL.
05:08But in the end, it was the NFL who killed the program.
05:11You think about your footwork, your release point, your follow through.
05:18And just when you think it can't get any worse...
05:22Playbook for New York.
05:23The league didn't take kindly to the show's depiction of football or the players' personal lives,
05:28especially when it came to contentious themes like substance use and legal issues.
05:32Executive Vice President Mark Shapiro claimed, quote,
05:35We're not in the business of antagonizing our partner.
05:37And had the show canceled after its first season.
05:40Short yardage, long yardage, I come through.
05:45And when it's fourth and long in life, sometimes you don't know what to do.
05:53Canceled because a contestant murdered his wife.
05:56Ryan?
05:58Sorry, what was the question?
06:00What is your network?
06:01Wanting to be a trophy wife, Megan Hauserman became the host of Megan Wants a Millionaire,
06:06in which 17 rich men competed to be her husband.
06:09One of them was Ryan Jenkins, who eventually placed third.
06:12After being eliminated from the show, Jenkins met and married swimsuit model Jasmine Fiore.
06:17But on August 15th, 2009, Fiore was found dead near a Buena Park dumpster.
06:22Jenkins was last identified Wednesday leaving his water ski boat in Point Roberts, Washington
06:28and was assumed to have crossed into his native Canada.
06:31The show was put on hiatus out of respect for Fiore's family and the supposedly grieving Jenkins.
06:36But just five days later, it was announced that Jenkins was being charged with his wife's murder.
06:41The show was immediately cancelled and Jenkins took his own life to escape justice.
06:46I'm not going to get physical.
06:47Because that would not turn out well for you.
06:55Cancelled because of an offensive depiction.
06:57Check it out, I'm the guy with two french fries up his nose, get it?
07:02A cult classic from Phil Lord, Christopher Miller and Bill Lawrence,
07:05Clone High is about a school full of young clones.
07:08These clones are modeled after famous historical figures.
07:11One of them being Mahatma Gandhi, depicted as a big partier who resents the popularity of his clone father.
07:16You know what JFK stands for in my book?
07:19Just Feigning Kindness.
07:24He's got you pegged, Kennedy.
07:26Unfortunately, this depiction was wildly controversial in Gandhi's native India
07:30and over 100 people staged a protest outside of Viacom's India branch.
07:34One of the protesters was Gandhi's great-grandson Tushar.
07:37MTV cancelled the show not long after.
07:40And while a revival later aired in 2023, Gandhi is noticeably absent.
07:45Joan, we've lost all control.
07:47I'm trying to break the kanga line from within, but it's too powerful.
07:56After I do three years, you suspect me?
07:58I take a fall protecting how many people I have a tape recorder.
08:02You got qualms?
08:03Absolutely not.
08:04This HBO drama had a ton of big names attached to it.
08:07It starred Dustin Hoffman, the pilot was directed by Michael Mann,
08:11and it was created by David Milch following the wildly successful Deadwood.
08:15Set in the world of horse racing, Luck used 50 trained horses throughout production,
08:19but three didn't make it out alive.
08:21Mr. Esquani, what do you have to say?
08:23What a surprise.
08:25Two died while filming the first season,
08:27having been euthanized after breaking their legs.
08:29A third horse died during production of the second season,
08:32prompting HBO to suspend filming while an investigation took place.
08:35They found that it was, quote,
08:37impossible to guarantee the safety of the horses and cancelled the series.
08:41You did some job.
08:42I did?
08:43Yeah, pissing them off with your wise-ass chirping
08:46about how good you thought this horse was going to run today.
08:48I was just saying something to say something.
08:54It is a hard decision, but giving gold stars away,
08:56it has to do with who's a hard worker,
08:59and I think Nathan just works his butt off.
09:01A very Lord of the Flies-esque experiment,
09:04Kid Nation got 40 young people together,
09:06plunked them in a New Mexico movie ranch,
09:08and let them attempt to create a functioning society without adult supervision,
09:12or at least very little of it.
09:14It's a fun idea, but the show was mired with controversy,
09:17specifically in its treatment towards the participants.
09:20Here you go, Taylor. 25 cents each.
09:23And laborers, there's just a little bit of money here, Laurel, sorry.
09:26The contract required them to be available 24 hours a day,
09:30which seemingly broke some New Mexico labor laws.
09:33Safety concerns were also raised,
09:35as one received grease burns and another reportedly drank bleach,
09:38although they were immediately treated by medical staff on set.
09:41And that's on top of the reported conditions regarding sanitation and hygiene,
09:45with all 40 forced to share one outhouse.
09:48Unsurprisingly, the show was cancelled after just one season.
09:52I was excited that we finally had more restrooms.
09:57It's also nice that we don't really have to wait in line for like three hours.
10:02Number 11, Sons of Guns,
10:04cancelled because the host was arrested.
10:06There's no way of knowing what the weapon's truly loaded with.
10:09It could be unstable enough that static electricity could set it off.
10:13After serving in the Marines,
10:15Will Hayden started a custom weapons shop called Red Jacket Firearms.
10:19This shop attracted the attention of the Discovery Channel,
10:21who created a program called Sons of Guns.
10:24The show followed Hayden and his family as they ran the shop
10:27and catered to their customers' needs,
10:28creating unique firearms and showing them off to the camera.
10:31Well, I know the Coens are going to be happy with the work we've done.
10:34I think we're going to have a nice long relationship with them.
10:36But the show was cancelled after season five
10:39when Hayden was arrested on charges of sexual abuse and assault involving minors.
10:43He was eventually convicted and received two life sentences.
10:46His sentence also prevents him from receiving parole,
10:49meaning he will spend the rest of his life in prison.
10:52I had an 80, I swear to God, 89-year-old woman.
10:55I love that show!
10:57Your daughter is so sweet!
10:59You be nice to her, she keeps you going.
11:07How the Obamacare brawl affects you,
11:10and that is the subject of this evening's Talking Points Memo.
11:13The O'Reilly Factor,
11:14a political talk show starring conservative commentator Bill O'Reilly,
11:18aired for over two decades on Fox News.
11:21However, this long run came crashing down in April of 2017
11:25when the New York Times reported that O'Reilly and Fox News
11:28had settled five sexual harassment lawsuits,
11:31dating back 15 years.
11:33More than half of the O'Reilly Factor's advertisers
11:35pulled their support following the allegations,
11:38and O'Reilly was subsequently fired from Fox News on April 19th.
11:42The show continued for three episodes without O'Reilly,
11:45before officially ending on April 21st, 2017.
11:49I worked for 12 companies.
11:51Not one time did I have any interaction with HR,
11:55any complaints filed against me.
12:03Cee Lo Green's The Good Life was a reality show
12:05that aired for just six episodes on TBS,
12:08starring everyone's favorite R&B artist, Cee Lo Green.
12:11Sounds charming and cool, right?
12:13Well, he was everyone's favorite R&B artist.
12:16And then came the tweets.
12:18While pleading no contest to forcing a woman to take an illicit substance,
12:22Cee Lo Green vented on Twitter and insinuated
12:24that only conscious individuals can be sexually assaulted.
12:27His show was immediately cancelled by TBS,
12:30and although a source claimed that it was purely due to low ratings,
12:34the timing is extremely suspect.
12:44It's not gonna make it.
12:46House of Cards was once Netflix's signature show,
12:49but in October 2017,
12:51actor Anthony Rapp accused star Kevin Spacey of a sexual advance
12:55when Rapp was still a teenager in 1986.
12:57Just 12 hours later,
12:59Netflix announced that they were cancelling House of Cards,
13:02and that the upcoming 2018 season would be its last.
13:05A few days later,
13:06Netflix announced that they were severing all ties with Kevin Spacey,
13:10so he would not appear in the final season.
13:12And while sources claim Netflix had decided to end House of Cards
13:15before Rapp's accusation,
13:17many doubt the authenticity of these claims.
13:29Now, who'd have thought a show called Politically Incorrect
13:31would be cancelled for being Politically Incorrect?
13:34In an episode dated just one week after 9-11,
13:37host Bill Maher and guest Dinesh D'Souza generated controversy
13:40by arguing that the terrorists were brave warriors,
13:43and that the American military were cowards for,
13:46quote,
14:01Advertisers quickly withdrew their support,
14:04and the network had a lot of trouble finding advertisers to fund their show.
14:08Politically Incorrect was cancelled the following June,
14:11and while ABC claims that the cancellation was a result of bad ratings,
14:14Maher and many others directly blamed the post-9-11 controversy.
14:34This is one of those shows that somehow gripped an entire nation,
14:37gave its subjects their 15 minutes of fame,
14:40and made them immensely wealthy along the way.
14:42By August of 2014,
14:44the show had aired 48 episodes and 7 specials,
14:47and was riding high as one of TLC's most successful programs.
14:51However, the show was cancelled the following October
14:54after it was revealed that the matriarch June Shannon
14:57was dating the man allegedly responsible for abusing her own daughter 10 years earlier.
15:01He did this to me.
15:02Why would you let him come around the girls knowing what he did?
15:06An entire season's worth of episodes went unaired,
15:09and Here Comes Honey Boo Boo quickly faded into obscurity.
15:20Charlie Rose was a long-running talk show,
15:22in which the titular host interviewed leading writers,
15:25politicians,
15:26business people,
15:27entertainers,
15:28and scientists.
15:29It was syndicated on PBS for over 25 years,
15:32until it was swiftly cancelled in November of 2017,
15:36after Rose was accused of sexual misconduct.
15:50Bloomberg Television and PBS immediately announced
15:52that they were suspending the show,
15:54and pulled reruns from the air.
15:56The following day, they cancelled the show's distribution,
15:59and severed their ties with Rose.
16:11Louis was one of the most critically acclaimed comedies of the last decade,
16:15but in November of 2017,
16:17the New York Times published a story about sexual misconduct allegations against C.K.
16:22According to the women in the report,
16:24C.K. had asked them to watch him during inappropriately intimate situations.
16:28Despite C.K. having initially denied the rumors,
16:30he finally admitted his transgressions after the Times story was published.
16:34While Louis had been on an extended hiatus following the conclusion of season 5,
16:38FX severed all ties with C.K. following the allegations,
16:42essentially ending Louis in the process.
16:55Roseanne Barr achieved something most TV stars can only dream of.
16:59Her beloved sitcom was brought back,
17:0120 years after its initial conclusion.
17:04It garnered strong if mixed reviews,
17:06and was an enormous rating success.
17:09And then she blew it.
17:10Barr took to Twitter to comment on Obama's senior advisor Valerie Jarrett
17:14in a very negative way.
17:25The tweet obviously generated a ton of outrage,
17:28and ABC swiftly cancelled Roseanne,
17:31stating that her remarks were, quote,
17:33abhorrent, repugnant, and inconsistent with our values.
17:36Yep, that's one way to put it.
17:44Number 2. 19 kids and counting.
17:46Cancelled because of abuse accusations.
17:54Like Here Comes Honey Boo Boo,
17:5619 Kids and Counting was a rating smash for TLC,
17:59that both weirdly mesmerized fans,
18:01and generated a ton of hate towards its subjects.
18:04This show followed the devout Duggar family,
18:06which included parents Jim Bob and Michelle,
18:09and yes, their 19 children.
18:11However, a terrible secret was revealed in 2015.
18:15In Touch Weekly revealed a police report from 2006,
18:18claiming that the eldest son, Josh Duggar,
18:20had behaved inappropriately towards multiple girls,
18:23including some of his own sisters while they were asleep.
18:26Many advertisers pulled their support,
18:28and TLC quickly cancelled the show.
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18:46Number 1. Paula's Best Dishes.
18:49Cancelled because of racist comments.
18:54Uh, for the wrong that I've done.
18:57Celebrity chef Paula Deen,
18:59known for her delicious and super rich southern comfort cuisine,
19:02had a long and successful history with the Food Network.
19:05Her first show, Paula's Home Cooking,
19:07premiered in 2002,
19:09and she followed this up with both Paula's Party,
19:11and then Paula's Best Dishes.
19:13However, Deen found herself in some hot grease
19:15when she admitted, during a legal deposition,
19:17to having used racial slurs.
19:20The Food Network was quick to act.
19:22They severed ties with Deen,
19:23and decided against renewing her contract,
19:25ending Paula's Best Dishes,
19:27and terminating their long relationship
19:29with the Queen of Butter.
19:30I've worked hard and I've made mistakes,
19:33but that is no excuse.
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