Amazon cancels Sneaky Pete after three seasons. Created by David Shore and Bryan Cranston, the crime drama stars Giovanni Ribisi as a con man who uses identity theft to flee from his past. Amazon released the entirety of Sneaky Pete season 3 on May 10, 2019.

Originally produced for CBS, Sneaky Pete’s pilot premiered in August 2015. After not being ordered to series, Amazon picked up the show one month later, however production was delayed when Shore was replaced by Graham Yost as showrunner. In the ‘90s, the Canadian filmmaker wrote feature films like Speed and Speed 2: Cruise Control, and he’s perhaps best known as the creator of FX’s Justified. Yost also executive produced the acclaimed FX series The Americans. For Amazon’s Sneaky Pete season 1, which ultimately premiered in January 2017, Yost enlisted Margo Martindale to co-star alongside Ribisi, along with Shane McRae, Libe Barer, and Marin Ireland. In addition, the aforementioned Cranston (Breaking Bad) had a recurring role on the series. As a whole, Sneaky Pete has been well received by critics and fans alike, as the drama currently holds a 96 percent Tomatometer score and a 92 percent audience scores on Rotten Tomatoes.

Per Deadline, Amazon has decided not to renew Sneaky Pete. While an official reason hasn't been cited, it’s notable that Sneaky Pete season 3 featured a new producing team led by Blake Masters, this coming after Yost, Michael Dinner, and Fred Golan left after the second installment. For Sneaky Pete season 3, Masters wrote the season premiere, and four episodes were directed by Jon Avnet, an American filmmaker who previously collaborated with Yost on Justified. In addition, both Clare Kilner (EastEnders) and Laura Innes (How to Get Away with Murder) directed two episodes each.


In March 2018, we discussed why nobody seemed to be watching Amazon’s #1 most-watched show at the time, Sneaky Pete. As an actor, the series’ lead, Ribisi, has maintained a steady career in feature films for nearly 25 years, but he’s mostly known as a character actor. Ribisi had a small role in Steven Spielberg’s 1998 war classic Saving Private Ryan, and he led high-profile 2000 features like Boiler Room and Gone in 60 Seconds. Since then, however, Ribisi has remained mostly under the radar. In the near future, Ribisi may reach the pinnacle of his career, at least in terms of pop culture exposure, as he’s set to reprise his Avatar character, Parker Selfridge, in both Avatar 2 and Avatar 3.

Given the wild success of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and the renewal of new drama series like Jack Ryan, Homecoming, and Hanna, Amazon may be preparing for the next phase after a relatively successful run with Sneaky Pete. While the series didn’t become a pop culture juggernaut, it did indeed please loyal viewers. From Amazon’s perspective, the network may be hoping that Sneaky Pete’s fanbase will transfer over to Nicolas Winding Refn's upcoming drama series Too Old to Die Young, which is scheduled for a June 14 release.