Amazon Cancels Sneaky Pete After 3 Seasons

, who took over from Graham Yost. Yost had previously replaced David Shore, the series' [...]

By Russ Burlingame

sneaky-pete
(Photo: Amazon Studios)

Amazon has cancelled Sony TV's Sneaky Pete, a dramedy starring Giovanni Ribisi and co-created by Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston, after three seasons, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The show's third (and now final) season premiered on Amazon Prime in May -- just weeks after THR did a statistical breakdown that suggested the allure of a new series is considered a commodity unto itself at streaming services and almost no Amazon series last more than three seasons. Sneaky Pete now joins shows like The Tick, Man in the High Castle, Mozart in the Jungle, and Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams in the tech giant's scrap pile.

In Sneaky Pete, a con man (Ribisi) on the run from a vicious gangster (Cranston) takes cover from his past by assuming the identity of his prison cellmate, Pete, "reuniting" with Pete's estranged family, a colorful, dysfunctional group that threatens to drag him into a world just as dangerous as the one he's trying to escape - and, just maybe, give him a taste of the loving family he's never had. Cranston is not a series regular, but a recurring guest -- and booking him less than two years after the hugely buzzy Breaking Bad finale aired in 2013 was likely a big part of attracting Amazon to the project.

Amazon had been high on the project as recently as last year, when Amazon Studios' Jennifer Salke identified the show as one of their best-performing series in its season three renewal. As THR notes in their report, exact numbers are impossible to come by since streaming services do not release viewership numbers. The show's premiere was, at the time of its second-season renewal shortly after, the second-biggest opening for an Amazon original. Closer to home, though, there was a bit of uncertainty behind the scenes. Season three saw the show get its third showrunner (Blake Masters), who took over from Graham Yost. Yost had previously replaced David Shore, the series' co-creator, although to Amazon's credit, he left early in the project, abandoning Sneaky Pete after CBS passed on it and Amazon bought it.

Of note is the fact that Salke joined Amazon Studios just last year, taking over from former head Roy Price, who originally bought Sneaky Pete. Most of the shows created under Price's reign are gone, although given the earlier data that only about 7% of Amazon shows ever make it past three seasons that might not actually be an indicator that Salke is cleaning house so much as business as usual. While no new Sneaky Pete is coming from the streamer, you can still catch the three existing seasons on Amazon Prime.

SYFY also just announced that they would not pick up Deadly Class, also produced by Sony Pictures Television, for a second season. The producers of that series will shop it to other networks.

Trending Now: