HBO Cancels Westworld After Four Seasons

Westworld is closing up shop, as HBO is cancelling the sci-fi drama after its recent fourth season. THR reports that the network has decided to not to renew the series and is considering it finished following the fourth season, which concluded in August.

The series has been one of HBO’s biggest cornerstones and has been an awards favorite as well, with 54 Emmy nominations. The series’ creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy had expressed a desire for a fifth season to wrap up the storyline, but a drop in ratings and acclaim for the series saw it lose a bit of its shine. Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav has been on a quest to cut costs in the company since the merger earlier this year, but THR cites sources as saying that saving money was not a factor here the way it has been for other canceled or shelved projects.

The move is considered a surprising one, as most considered a fifth season likely in order to provide the kind of proper conclusion that would make the show a more attractive streaming watch from start to finish. Season four ended on an ambiguous note as society has fallen apart and Dolores starts to create something new inside the Sublime.

HBO said in a statement, “Over the past four seasons, Lisa and Jonah have taken viewers on a mind-bending odyssey, raising the bar at every step. We are tremendously grateful to them, along with their immensely talented cast, producers and crew, and all of our partners at Kilter Films, Bad Robot and Warner Bros. Television. It’s been a thrill to join them on this journey.”

Kilter Films’ added, “Making Westworld has been one of the highlights of our careers. We are deeply grateful to our extraordinary cast and crew for creating these indelible characters and brilliant worlds. We’ve been privileged to tell these stories about the future of consciousness – both human and beyond – in the brief window of time before our AI overlords forbid us from doing so.”