Showtime Cancels Penny Dreadful: City of Angels

Despite receiving generally positive reviews in its first season for the premium cabler, Showtime has announced that it will not be moving forward with a second season of the horror drama spin-off Penny Dreadful: City of Angels, according to Variety.

“Showtime has decided not to move forward with another season of Penny Dreadful: City of Angels,” Showtime said in a statement. “We would like to thank executive producers John Logan, Michael Aguilar and the entire cast and crew for their outstanding work on this project.”

City of Angels was set in 1938 Los Angeles, a time and place deeply infused with Mexican-American folklore and social tension. Rooted in the conflict between characters connected to the deity Santa Muerte and others allied with the Devil, Penny Dreadful: City of Angels will explore an exciting mix of the supernatural and the combustible reality of that period, creating new occult myths and moral dilemmas within a genuine historical backdrop.

When a grisly murder shocks the city, Detective Tiago Vega (Daniel Zovatto) and his partner Lewis Michener (Nathan Lane) become embroiled in an epic story that reflects the rich history of Los Angeles: from the building of the city’s first freeways and its deep traditions of Mexican-American folklore, to the dangerous espionage actions of the Third Reich and the rise of radio evangelism. Before long, Tiago and his family are grappling with powerful forces that threaten to tear them apart.

The cast included Daniel Zovatto (Don’t Breathe), Natalie Dormer (Game of Thrones), Kerry Bishé (Halt and Catch Fire), Amy Madigan (Gone Baby Gone), Brent Spiner (Outcast), Lin Shaye (Insidious), Rory Kinnear (Penny Dreadful), Piper Perabo (Covert Affairs), Adam Rodriguez (Criminal Minds), Thomas Kretschmann (Avengers: Age of Ultron), Lorenza Izzo (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood), Michael Gladis (Mad Men), Dominic Sherwood (Shadowhunters), Ethan Peck (Star Trek: Discovery) and Nathan Lane (The Birdcage) as Lewis Michener, a veteran LAPD officer who is wise to the ways of the world and ruthless in pursuit of his goals. He becomes a partner and mentor to the younger Detective Tiago Vega (Zovatto).

Creator John Logan returned as series creator, writer and executive producer. The Emmy nominated original series ran on air for three seasons. Penny Dreadful is a unique mash-up of literary horror that followed the story of Vanessa Ives (Eva Green), Ethan Chandler (Josh Hartnett), and Sir Malcolm (Timothy Dalton) as they’ve worked together, at all costs, to vanquish the evil that relentlessly pursues them.