Fans 'crying' as Queen Latifah's hit crime drama axed after five seasons
Crime drama fans have quite literally been reduced to tears after the cancellation of a hugely successful series.
Starring Queen Latifah, The Equalizer premiered on CBS in February 2021 and has since acquired a loyal following.
Executive producer Latifah also plays the titular character, starring alongside Liza Lapira, Laya DeLeon Hayes, Lorraine Toussaint, and Tory Kittles.
Its plot follows Robyn McCall, aka The Equalizer, a single mother to a teenage daughter living in New York. With a mysterious background, she utilises her extensive skills to help those with nowhere else to turn.
Season 5 premiered last October, with the season finale airing just this weekend on May 4.
Alas, fans have since been crushed to learn there will be no more.
The show's cancellation was confirmed by the CBS network on Friday following a decline in ratings when episodes moved to a later hour on Sunday night.
Each week, it has been averaging just under six million viewers, while season 4 was attracting an average of 7.89million.
Reacting to the axe, Latifah, 55, took to Instagram to profess her love for her character one last time.
She wrote to her 8.2million followers: 'Stepping into a kick-ass role like Robyn was everything I hoped it would be. Shakim and I at Flavor Unit are always excited to bring these kinds of roles and projects to life—and then we just hope you love them as much as we do.
'The Equalizer blew past every dream we had for it, and having the opportunity to do this for five seasons honestly feels surreal.'
She continued sweetly: 'Thank you to our amazing cast, crew, and producers and writers! And I can't say enough about the FANS!Y'all have been so loyal, so loud, and so ride-or-die—and that's exactly why we keep doing this. We can't thank you enough. It means the world to us.' https://www.instagram.com/p/DJK7pfGy6D6/
Promising her own future projects, she concluded: 'And don't worry—I'll be back kicking ass in something new real soon. Can't wait to share it with you.'
Taking to the comments, The Equalizer viewers expressed their devastation, with @candikgirl declaring: 'I'm done with CBS.'
Latifah also received plenty of support from pals in the industry, as Glee star Amber Riley commented: 'It was mg dream to be on that show! I'm so mad 😩 me and my mom LOVED the show!'
'You are epic in every way♥️🙌🏾', added Ariana DeBose.
Over on X, fans are planning on taking physical action against the cancellation, with @ShawnaIam6899 saying they wish to 'start a petition'.
'CBS did this show dirty switching the time slots first 8:00 then 9:00 now 10:00 in just 5 seasons', they wrote.
'The Equalizer deserves to renewed for one or even two more seasons it's not fair and it's not right', agreed @Ashe21_, adding the hashtag SaveTheEqualizer.
@CandiceTinnon ranted: 'I believe CBS high-key sabotaged #TheEqualizer! They kept moving the show time around, and they were barely promoting the show anymore! The Equalizer deserved better! This is bulls**t!'
@JennJennFeliz agreed: 'Someone needs to pick up #TheEqualizer It's a crime to have cancelled that series!'
Others were also full of praise for what the show became, with @theerealavep penning: 'This show never stayed away from relevant-sensitive issues. Whether it was police brutality, trafficking, mental health, hate crimes across communities. The list continues. There were stories to be told.' More Trending
The Equalizer was born as an adaptation of the 1985-89 series of the same name, which was also made into a trio of feature films starring Denzel Washington.
According to Deadline, its sixth season would've likely been its last and been 13 episodes long.
As it lands on the scrap heap, at least the show is in good company, joining fellow veteran drama FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted and comedy Poppa's House, which were also recently axed.
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