Salem Canceled at WGN America After Three Seasons
Paul Dailly at .The witching hour is over for Salem.
WGN has announced that Salem will be coming to a close after Season 3.
The series was the the network's first foray into scripted programming and paved the way for the likes of Underground, Outsiders and the now defunct Manhattan.
Salem kicked off in April 2014 with solid ratings for the network. I
t started with 1.5 million viewers, but had slipped to around 400,000 viewers by the end of the freshman run.
Ratings have continued to dip for the show, with Season 3 averaging just over 200,000 viewers per week in live + same day ratings.
Critics have been on the fence about the show since its inception.
However, with Outsiders and Underground pulling in much higher ratings, it comes as little surprise that the network is pulling the plug.
Manhattan was pulling similar ratings when it was canceled earlier this year and we already know how that turned out.
For those who are worried about getting an ending with such a late cancelation, you need not worry about.
“We knew this would be the third and final season and were able to craft an exciting climax to Mary’s transformational saga,” series creators Brannon Braga and Adam Simon revealed to Deadline.
“We are grateful to WGN America and Fox 21 for being terrific partners and giving us free reign to create a satisfying conclusion — one we believe respects our love of storytelling and the show’s passionate fans."
For those that still watch the show, it's been evident based on the way the storylines are going that a conclusion was just around the corner.
Sometimes, shows reach a natural conclusion and that appears to be the case for Salem.
It allows the stars to move on to other projects that will test their limits as actors.
It's a shame for the fans that it was announced so late, but it's good there will be an ending for the people who have stuck with it for so long.
Over to you, Salem fanatics.
What do you think about the show coming to an end?
Will you continue to watch WGN America?
Sound off below!
Note: Salem Season 3 Episode 6 airs December 14 on WGN America
Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.