Amazon Prime Video has reportedly canceled The Peripheral and A League of Their Own. While one of the best streaming services axing a couple of shows after a single season isn’t especially unusual, these cancelations are a little more surprising because both series had previously been renewed for second seasons.
Last week, Variety reported that The Peripheral had been canceled after its initial eight-episode run, and just hours later Variety also broke the news that A League of Their Own had also been axed after just a single season on Prime Video.
These cancelations will come as a particularly bitter blow to fans as both had been renewed for more episodes earlier this year. The Peripheral season 2 was announced in early February, while A League of Their Own got a shorter second season order back in April. It appears these plans have now been scrapped, but a small sliver of hope is that Amazon has yet to officially confirm either cancelation.
Variety’s source suggests the actors and writers strikes are to blame for Amazon’s apparent U-turn. The ongoing industrial action is impacting pretty much every corner of Hollywood, and with no end date in sight, it seems that Amazon felt persisting with further seasons of these shows was no longer viable. Variety spoke to individuals close to the productions who indicated that neither would be ready to premier more episodes until 2025, which would have resulted in a very lengthy gap between seasons.
Only adding to the disappointment is the fact that both shows were generally well-received by critics and viewers. The Peripheral earned a solid 79% critics score and an 86% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes. A League of Their Own’s enjoyed an even better reception with an impressive 95% from critics and 87% from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. For both shows to end so unceremoniously is a great shame.
The Peripheral was loosely based on a William Gibson novel and starred Chloë Grace Moretz as a young gamer named Flynne Fisher who discovers an alternative future via VR headset. But this virtual place warns of a dark future that could become a very frightening reality The sci-fi drama also featured Gary Carr, Jack Reynor, JJ Feild and T'Nia Miller.
Meanwhile, A League of Their Own was a little lighter in tone. Inspired by the classic 1992 movie of the same name, it followed the formation of an all-female baseball team in the 1940s. The show debuted in August 2022 and was praised for its LGBTQ+ content and went on to win a GLAAD award. It featured Abbi Jacobson, Chanté Adams, D'Arcy Carden, Gbemisola Ikumelo and Roberta Colindrez.
Prime Video subscribers disappointed by this news should check out our round of the best shows on Prime Video for our top picks that can help fill the void. Let's also hope The Peripheral and A League of Their Own can find an alternative route back to our screens somewhere down the line.
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