Since many viewers who don’t frequent GateWorld or other Stargate sites may be looking for answers today, we’ll do our best to answer these questions here.
There is a bit of debate on just why the show was ended when it was. MGM and SCI FI Channel jointly announced in late August that the current fifth season would be Atlantis‘s last, as the show moved to the world of TV and DVD movies. Some 48 hours later, they also announced that a new series, Stargate Universe, would premiere this summer.
Low Ratings?
The debate over the show’s cancellation has to do with how great the ratings were a factor. The show’s Nielsen numbers have fallen dramatically over the last five years. In Season One ratings were well over the 2.0 mark; today ratings of 1.2 (Live + Same Day) are typical. Like the rest of television, much of this is attributable to the rise of TiVo and other digital video recorders. More people are “time-shifting” their television viewing, and the industry is still struggling to properly measure the viewers of a television show (and its commercials, which pay the bills).
Though the raw ratings numbers are down, viewership for Atlantis has been inching upward for the past couple of years. When DVR-delayed viewers are accounted for (though they may be skipping past commercials), Atlantis hasn’t lost all that much of its U.S. audience.
DVD Movies? Or Stargate Universe?
Instead of ratings, many fans point to the fact that the studio and network are replacing the show with the third series, Stargate Universe. Was one cancelled for the other (since the producers don’t want to do two series simultaneously again, as well as SG-1 movies)?
According to series co-creator Brad Wright, the matter seems to be more complex than that. The producers, MGM (the studio that owns the franchise), and SCI FI executives sat down in the summer of 2008 to strategize what they felt is in the best interests of the entire franchise over the long term. Add to this mix the typical life cycle for a television show and the importance of full-length movies to the show’s creators, and a picture begins to emerge: In order to make Atlantis DVD movies successful (among an audience much broader than the fan base), they should be made before general interest in Atlantis has waned. If the TV show runs long enough to be cancelled due to low viewership, in other words, the studio won’t be eager to pour millions of dollars into making a Stargate Atlantis movie.
At the same time, Universe was in development and had been pitched to the network the previous fall (and received well). Launching a new series always draws new attention to a network and a franchise, and plans are to make the third series a bit different from its predecessors. (More on that later.)
According to Wright, the three parties mutually decided to end Atlantis and make movies, and then launch Stargate Universe. This would allow the SG-1, Atlantis, and Universe “legs” of the franchise to continue to run together, hopefully far into the future.
Make of all that what you will. The short of it is that Stargate Atlantis was not cancelled due to low ratings — though as Wright recently hinted, significantly higher ratings would certainly have changed the discussion. Rather, when a studio like MGM has found such success in the DVD market (especially with last year’s SG-1 releases, The Ark of Truth and Continuum), the nature of what “cancellation” means has changed. With DVD movies now a major part of this franchise, Atlantis has in some ways been a “victim” of Stargate’s success.
NEXT: The future of the franchise
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View Comments
Thanks for the information. In a way it's good to know that falling ratings were not the reason Atlantis was cancelled.
Sorry, I'm still not interested in Universe and I don't plan on watching. But I find it quite fascinating the way suddenly, some new, "older" characters are being added to quell the 90210 comments. But whatever, I"m not buying it. This is a show aimed at a new, younger demographic. The oldies are just tokens.
In all fairness, this Season averaged around a 1.6 HH rating and 5 years ago was like a 1.8 to 1.9 HH rating. Not only has time-shifting changed, but the entire network has dipped. Even shows like Eureka don't get those 2.0+ stellar ratings anymore. People are going to argue and call it spin, but they don't understand how it works.
In all respect to Brad, no show on SCI FI pulls what SGA/SG-1/Eureka/ECW/BSG used to do. I think the highest rating was a 1.9 for Ghost Hunters. How can they expect epic ratings from a channel that is entirely down. But are ratings really down? No, you cannot compare a rating point from one year to the next especially 5 years ago. They are always changing. It is the viewer totals that are what is important.
People don't understand because the amount of houses that get SCI FI increased it changes the ratings denominator. A 1.5 now was like a 1.8 three years ago.
I feel betrayed.
I keep watching, being a loyal fan and all and what do they do with my favourite show? They cancel it.
Good job, Sci-Fi/MGM.
P.S.
Universe is gonna suck...
Well, I do feel what they did will benefit the overall franchise. It will definitely expand it and make it greater..
and jasong, if you've read the character details, (new ones) and the storyline, this show has the potential to be amazingly great.. You will be missing out but it's no loss to me..
Seems like they've never heard the saying "If it aint broke don't fix it"
Now the fate of the Stargate franchise lies in a new untested show Stargate Universe, which if it fails will most likely be the final nail in the coffin for the Stargate franchise.
While I'm going to take a wait and see approach on Stargate Universe and cross my fingers that it turns out to be really good, if they really want broaden their market spot wasting time making direct to DVD movies and go all out on a big budget movie that can be released at cinemas instead.
Ok so can we bury the hatchett that it was not ratings that got the show canned? Even if you scratch out DVR the show is still getting a 1.3 HH rating which is enough for the top 5, even 3 most weeks for the network
Insaneboy, why are you betrayed? they ended it with the approval of the creators, are you the kind of person who goes. "how dare they end a 2 season show that had a very specific storyline and wouldn't have made it past 2 seasons!"
Firstly they are making movies, which while not the show are still the same characters with the same actors playing them.
Universe is the logical step, why would you make another show that has all of there actors in their mid to late 30's? what it does is mean you have a time limit on how long you can have realistic damage being done to them, they can't get shot in season 5 or 6 cause that could very well kill them a lot quicker than say i don't know. a 24 year old.
There were always going to be older cast members in Universe, its just that everyone leapt on the casting call that wasn't official and never mentioned the full cast.
My one concern is how many people will be on the ship with them, cause how can they have characters die if there is only 50 or so people.... I suppose it will be like Voyager, where the number of crew always change and no one really knows how many people are left.
People suck it up, if you don't like Universe don't watch it, but don't judge it before you've seen at least the first episode. I've judged many things on the Pilot, and Pilots are so raw.
I myself am getting excited about SGU. We will have more SG-1 and SGA along with a new series. I just have been trying to prove a point that it was not SGA's performance that led to it's end. I think a lot of folks see that now.
I think Universe has great potential, especially with Cooper and Wright at the helm. What they did in seasons 9 and 10 of SG-1 was pretty amazing. Personally, I think Atlantis started to go downhill when they left as show runners and let it get decidedly darker in tone. Unfortunately--and this is what has got me worried--is that they are going after the "darker in tone" approach to storytelling. One of the great things about SG-1 was that it stayed optimistic and avoided Battlestar's "everybody is a scumbag" approach to its characters. So, if they can keep it family-friendly then I think it has a good shot. Regardless, I will definitely be watching it this summer.
Lets cut to the chase. Atlantis finale not so good. First we could never get back then we could get back then we move the whole thing to Earth. Dumb as dumb gets. Can't wait for the new series but what will they do with Atlantis on Earth? And as far as spending money on movies let us face the other reality that its more like a movie of the week than a feature film. Bleed us for the DVD but go cheap on the production. As for ratings, maybe if sci-fi would put it on at a decent hour it would have done better and if sci-fi maintained a regular schedule, (where is Eureka and Who and Torchwood?) maybe we'd be able to tune in. I really wish some geeks with money would go into competition with Sci-Fi. Hey, Sci-Fi wrestling anyone? Give me a break!!