Heroes fans had high hopes for Tim Kring’s Heroes: Reborn, but the reboot turned out to be more like its parent show’s season 4 than season 1.
At the Television Critics Association press tour, we learned that NBC has chosen not to renew Heroes: Reborn, the 10-episode miniseries that premiered in late 2015 and wraps up later this month. Reborn was a revival/reboot of the 2006 drama series Heroes, led by original showrunner Tim Kring.
Said NBC Chairman Bob Greenblatt (via TV Line), “As far as I know, there are no more incarnations of Heroes coming. [It was] always the plan unless Tim woke up one day and said, ‘Oh, I have another chapter to tell.’ I think we’re coming to the end… of the world, maybe. Stay tuned.”
As Heroes: Reborn was only ever envisioned as a miniseries, this should come as no surprise. Still, a better performance might have ensured a lasting franchise for Heroes, which actually started as a strong, original show back in 2006.
But between forgettable new characters and the casual offing of old favorites, no one was really sure what viewing segment NBC’s Heroes: Reborn miniseries was trying to appeal to.
Related: Why is Heroes: Reborn treating original characters so poorly?
The short-lived revival was set up to potentially redeem the teetering original drama, which started out incredibly strongly in 2006 with its “Save the Cheerleader, save the world” catchphrase and terrifying villain Sylar (Zachary Quinto, now a superstar). But despite its phenomenal first season, Heroes quickly tapered off, and by the time it concluded in 2010, it had lost most of its viewership (and original cast).
Heroes: Reborn introduced a new set of characters, led by Chuck‘s Zachary Levi and original star Jack Coleman (Noah Bennet), but also lured in old fans by promising cameos by original cast members Masi Oka (Hiro), Sendhil Ramamurthy (Doctor Suresh), Jimmy-Jean Louis (The Haitian) and Greg Grunberg (Matt Parkman).
That would all prove not only pointless, but perhaps even detrimental to the Heroes mythos, seeing as most of the original characters met terrible fates for no real reason.
The final episode of Heroes: Reborn — and likely the final installment of the Heroes saga ever — will air on January 21.
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