‘Ziwe’ Canceled as Showtime Orders Mandy Patinkin Comedy ‘Seasoned’

Lesley Goldberg
·2 min read
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The Chris McCarthy era at Showtime has claimed another victim.

The premium cable network, which was added to the Paramount Global exec’s purview last year, has canceled late night talk show Ziwe after two seasons. Additionally, Showtime has made decisions on two of its three comedy pilots, handing out a series order to Mandy Patinkin family comedy Seasoned while passing on The Wood. What’s more, the original movie Heist 88 starring Courtney B. Vance, has moved from Paramount+ to Showtime.

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The changes come as McCarthy has identified three different programming groups for his vision of Showtime, which is being rebranded as Paramount+ With Showtime in a bid to better align the streamer and linear network: franchises, diverse cultures and antiheroes.

As part of McCarthy’s Showtime review, the exec who also oversees linear networks Paramount, MTV, Comedy Central and more has integrated the cabler’s exec team with MTV Studios as co-head of programming Jana Winograde departed and her partner in crime, Gary Levine, shifted to an advisory role.

McCarthy has since cast off a number of Showtime series, including Ripley (sold to Netflix), Three Women (moved to Starz) and, this week, the pricey King Shaka (which is being shopped). He’s also canceled nearly every bubble show on the network with The L Word: Generation Q, Let the Right One In and American Gigolo all getting the ax. Ziwe, which recently wrapped its second season, was also on the bubble. All that remains is comedy I Love That for You, which could buck the trend and earn a second-season renewal.

McCarthy has also announced that his version of Showtime will feature spinoffs in the worlds of Dexter and Billions, with The Chi and even Yellowjackets rumored to be getting the franchise treatment that has worked well with Yellowstone.

Seasoned was ordered to pilot before McCarthy was given oversight of Showtime. The series is inspired by the life and relationship of former Homeland star Patinkin and his wife, Kathryn Grody, and co-created by the couple’s son, Gideon Grody-Patinkin, and Ewen Wright.

The Wood, which has been passed over, was also prepped before McCarthy’s arrival and followed a group of Black friends in Inglewood, California.

With the cancellation of Ziwe, Showtime is officially out of the late night space. The cabler’s Desus & Mero wrapped last year after the duo split up.

THR sibling site Deadline was first to report the news.

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