10 TV Shows That Led To Other TV Shows Being Cancelled (And Why)
3. Jay Leno Killed My Name Is Earl
For a few years back in the early 2000s, My Name Is Earl featured one of TV’s most impressive comedic ensembles with leading man Jason Lee supported by Evolution’s Ethan Suplee and Not Another Teen Movie’s Jaime Pressly in his search for moral salvation one sorry note at a time. The quirky, original premise gave rise to a solid sitcom, but the show was cut short after an intense cliff hanger ending to its fourth season.
So, what led the network to jettison this beloved comedy creation?
Why, Jay Leno’s chat show, of course!
Yes, the show was cancelled after the NBC promised creator Greg Garcia a fifth series, thus prompting that cliff hanger ending, in favour of prioritizing a chat show from the divisive comic and presenter, who had backstabbed former Simpsons writer Conan O'Brien in order to get the gig, and whose show ended up a failure anyway.
Luckily Garcia didn’t stay mad—certainly not mad enough to include a joke at the expense of the executive’s decision in his next series, Raising Hope, wherein one of them receives a nut shot for his part in cancelling the comedy.