‘Zoo’ Canceled at CBS After 3 Seasons (Exclusive) (2024)

CBS is closing its Zoo.

The network has opted to cancel the summer scripted drama series starring James Wolk after three seasons.

Produced in-house at CBS Television Studios, the show was based on the best-seller by author/executive producer James Patterson about a wave of violent animal attacks against humans. Zoo was one of the network’s pricey scripted series that used the business model created by Under the Dome where Netflix signed a deal with CBS Television Studios to stream the show after its seasons were completed. The model created the ability to do expensive scripted series in the typically little-watched summer months as the show was profitable off the bat thanks to the Netflix pact.

Zoo averaged 2.65 million viewers in its third season,down nearly 2 million viewers from season two,which averaged 4.45 million viewers. In the demo,the Sept. 21 season three finale drew a 0.5 rating among adults 18-49,even from the season three opener but down two-tenths from the season two finale.

Zoo is the longest-running original summer scripted drama on CBS. The decision to cancel the series comes after the network renewed the Alex Kurtzman-produced summer drama Salvation for a sophom*ore run. That series landed an SVOD deal with Amazon, helping to make the low-rated thriller financially viable for another season. Salvation and Zoo were the lone scripted series to air on CBS this past summer.

Zoo, which was ordered straight to series in July 2014, was produced by Jeff Pinkner(Fringe),Josh Appelbaum(Life on Mars, Star-Crossed),Andre Nemec(Star-Crossed) andScott Rosenberg(Life on Mars). The four executive produced alongside James Mangold(Walk the Line),Cathy Konrad(Girl, Interrupted), Patterson,Bill Robinson,Leopoldo GoutandSteve Bowen.