'Murder in the First' season 4 cancellation news: TNT axes crime drama after three seasons
TNT has cancelled "Murder in the First," the San Francisco-based detective anthology series starring Kathleen Robertson and Taye Diggs.
The crime/mystery drama debuted in June 2014 and aired its final episode on Sept. 4 this year. The series chronicled a different murder case each season, with Robertson's Hildy Mulligan and Diggs' Terry English leading the investigations.
Deadline reported that TNT's decision to cancel "Murder in the First" may be part of the cable channel's bid to roll out a batch of new darker and more provocative drama shows. "Animal Kingdom," TNT's new edgy crime/family drama, debuted this summer. "Good Behavior," an upcoming drama about a con artist played by "Downton Abbey" alum Michelle Dockery, will premiere on the cabler in November.
Entertainment Weekly noted the similarities between "Murder in the First" and AMC's "The Killing," which was also a serialized crime drama. "The Killing" aired three seasons before shifting to Netflix for its fourth and final run.
Apart from Robertson and Diggs, "Murder in the First" also starred Ian Anthony Dale, Raphael Sbarge, Currie Graham, Lombardo Boyar, and Mimi Kirkland.
Diggs currently has a recurring role as city councilman Angelo Dubois in Fox's "Empire."
Co-created by veteran TV producer Steven Bochco, "Murder in the First" was based on Bochco's "Murder One," which followed a similar serialized format. "Murder One" aired on ABC between 1995 and 1997.
The show's freshman run centered on Erich Blunt (Tom Felton), a Silicon Valley prodigy suspected of killing his own father and his mistress. The sophomore season found Mulligan and English investigating the death of a fellow officer as San Francisco reeled from a deadly school bus shooting. In the third and final season, the two homicide detectives worked on the murder of a professional football player.
The show's first and third seasons consisted of 10 episodes while the second season had 12.