http://variety.com/2017/tv/news/jerrod-carmichael-exits-carmichael-show-nbc-1202484879/

“The Carmichael Show” is ending after three seasons (https://twitter.com/i/moments/880908925968756740), as its star and creator (http://uproxx.com/news/jerrod-carmichael-show-cancel/) Jerrod Carmichael has opted to exit to series (https://www.buzzfeed.com/jarettwieselman/the-carmichael-show-has-been-canceled-after-jerrod), Variety has learned.

“For three seasons (okay 2.5), I got to make a show that I love with my friends,” Carmichael said in a statement released to Variety. “It’s something I’ve wanted to do since I was 13. Now, I’m excited to go make other things that I love. Thank you to every person who worked on or watched the Carmichael show.”

“We are enormously proud of The Carmichael Show and Jerrod’s talent and vision to do a classic family sitcom that also taps into issues and relevant stories from the real world. We thank and salute the cast, crew, and producers — and especially Jerrod — for three critically-acclaimed seasons,” said NBC chairman Bob Greenblatt and NBC entertainment president, Jennifer Salke.

20th Century Fox Television presidents, Jonnie Davis and Howard Kurtzman, said: “’The Carmichael Show’ was such a wonderful show that we choose to focus today not on its loss but on the three incredible seasons we had the pleasure to produce. We are thankful to the brilliant Jerrod Carmichael and his talented cast, and to showrunner Danielle Sanchez-Witzel, our fantastic writers and devoted production team. It’s a rarity that a comedy series tackles the social and political issues of the day in such a clever and hilariously funny way. This show was special, and we will miss it.”

“The Carmichael Show” was co-created by Carmichael, Ari Katcher, Willie Hunter and Nicholas Stoller. Carmichael starred alongside Amber Stevens West, Lil Rel Howery, Tiffany Haddish, Loretta Devine and David Alan Grier.

The family sitcom debuted in summer 2015 and is currently in the midst of its third season. The six-episode first season averaged a 1.0 rating in adults 18-49 and 4.3 million viewers, according to Nielsen Live+Same Day data. Season 2, which was 13 episodes, averaged a 0.9 and 4.2 million. Season 3 is currently averaging a 0.8 and 3.7 million.

“The Carmichael Show” has been critically-praised for its inclusion of topics such as racism, rape, Black Lives Matter and Bill Cosby’s scandal, which enabled the show to stand out from other typical broadcast comedies. The show also aired an unedited episode with the N-word this season. Variety TV critic Maureen Ryan wrote, “‘The Carmichael Show’ is an NBC comedy you should be watching.”

Carmichael had been critical in the past of NBC for censoring the series. Recently, he said that he did not agree with the network’s decision to pull an episode that involved as mass shooting. “Really to me, what it says is that you don’t think that America is smart enough to handle real dialogue and something that reflects real family conversations and something that feels honest and true and still respects the victims,” Carmichael said.

Previously, ahead of its second season, NBC’s Salke spoke to Variety about Carmichael’s desire to depict real-life issues on the broadcast sitcom.“When we decided to move forward with Jerrod’s show, we bought into the idea that this is a show that tackles really uncomfortable conversations that should be happening in living rooms all over the country,” Salke said. “In a time when networks have to distinguish themselves and be authentic about relevant things and smart conversations, you can’t be afraid of talking about things like that, as long as they’re handled correctly.”

“The Carmichael Show” will wrap its third season later this summer.

At least we have Blackish.

At least we have Blackish.

I think that the writing was on the wall so to speak when NBC delayed the episode about Jerrod surviving a mass shooting. And naturally, Jerrod soon went on TV to air his grievances regarding NBC's handling of his show. And the episode concerning the N-word being aired uncensored added fuel to the problems. At the end of the day, perhaps The Carmichael Show was perhaps a tad bit too edgy for NBC's liking to handle. He probably got wind that the show was getting the axe and decided to "save face".

If the N word episode didn't air, then maybe the show would still be on.

If the N word episode didn't air, then maybe the show would still be on.

Another issue between NBC and The Carmichael Show was the economics behind it. The show was produced by 20th Century Fox and not in-house, which in NBC's case, would be Universal Television. When you deal with outside studios, you have to work out a licensing fee. It wasn't as if the show got the ratings it needed to stay on air. If it had been done by their own production, they likely would have allowed it to grow.

Why Was The Carmichael Show Canceled? (https://www.looper.com/1298245/why-the-carmichael-show-canceled/)

BY SAMANTHA BAMBINO/MAY 29, 2023 3:00 PM EST

No sitcom can run forever, but some leave a network's lineup sooner than others. This is the case for "The Carmichael Show," a comedy loosely based on the family life of Emmy-winning comedian Jerrod Carmichael. Known for putting a humorous spin on serious, societal issues, such as politics, religion, and mental health, "The Carmichael Show" ran for three seasons, from 2015 to 2017, before its cancelation.

Ratings for the series weren't necessarily bad, so why wasn't it renewed for a 4th season? Based on an official statement from Carmichael, reported by Deadline (https://deadline.com/2017/06/jerrod-carmichael-leaving-the-carmichael-show-nbc-1202122423/), he wanted to try his hand at new projects. He said, "For three seasons (okay 2.5), I got to make a show that I love with my friends. It's something I've wanted to do since I was 13. Now, I'm excited to go make other things that I love. Thank you to every person who worked on or watched 'The Carmichael Show.'"

Since the sitcom left NBC, Carmichael has achieved this goal. Not only did he make his directorial debut with 2021's "On the Count of Three," in which he also stars, he's also part of the 2023 film "Poor Things" alongside Emma Stone and Mark Ruffalo. However, there's more to the cancelation of "The Carmichael Show" than its creator wanting to stretch his wings.

Negotiations with NBC were difficult

The security of "The Carmichael Show" in NBC's lineup was shaky since 2016, when the network and 20th Century Fox TV struggled to come to an agreement on the renewal of Season 3, according to reporting by Deadline (https://deadline.com/2016/05/the-carmichael-show-renewed-season-3-nbc-1201756781/). While NBC wanted to shorten the season by several episodes, 20th TV and Jerrod Carmichael weren't having that. Eventually, NBC granted the desired 13 episodes at the last minute.

Still, if this struggle was already underway going into Season 3, it's not incredibly surprising that Season 4 never came to pass. When cast options for "The Carmichael Show" were about to expire, Carmichael announced his exit on his own terms.

At the time of the announcement, 20th Century Fox TV presidents Jonnie Davis and Howard Kurtzman said in a joint statement, "We are thankful to the brilliant Jerrod Carmichael and his talented cast ... It's a rarity that a comedy series tackles the social and political issues of the day in such a clever and hilariously funny way. This show was special, and we will miss it."