'The Gifted,' 'Rel' Canceled at Fox

Fox has started ripping off the Band-Aid on its cancellations.


The newly independent broadcast network has opted to cancel the sophomore drama The Gifted and the rookie comedy Rel.


The cancellations mark the first to come for the newly independent Fox Entertainment. Both shows were produced by 20th Century Fox Television, the TV studio that was included in the $71.3 billion asset sale from Fox to Disney.


The Gifted, which recently wrapped its second season, was produced by Marvel Television. Its renewal was considered a long shot, given that Marvel's TV fare is almost all now exclusively on Disney-owned platforms after Netflix cut ties with the company and canceled all of the comic book giant's remaining originals. (Hulu, which has Runaways and a slate of animated series, is now majority owned by Disney, as is FX, which has the final season of Legion due.) Season two averaged fewer than 2 million viewers and just under a 0.6 rating, dropping 40 percent from its freshman run.


The freshman Rel, meanwhile, also hailed from 20th TV. The multicamera comedy starred Lil Rel Howery (The Carmichael Show, Get Out) as a guy whose life is put to the test when he learns that his wife is having an affair with his barber and tries to rebuild his life post-divorce as a long-distance single father on the South Side of Chicago. The series, inspired by Lil Rel's life, counted Jerrod Carmichael as an executive producer. The cancellation arrives as the cast and creators are still mourning the passing of co-star Kevin Barnett. Rel was one of only a handful of new series that did not receive a back order for additional episodes this season.


The cancellations arrive as former AMC topper Charlie Collier is now running the broadcast network and is looking to make his mark on the new Fox. His first series order was for a docuseries-style revival of Beverly Hills, 90210, with many of the original cast returning. The network also is doubling down on animation, with the new series Bless the Harts and Duncanville joining the previously renewed Bob's Burgers, The Simpsons and Family Guy as well as the dramas The Resident and 911 on its 2019-2020 schedule. Fox next season will have fewer slots for scripted originals as the network doubles down on sports with the NFL, Major League Baseball and WWE.