How Angel Got Cancelled

[shadowkat]

Why Angel the Series Got Cancelled -- halfway through the Marsters Q&A, James reveals how Angel got cancelled. Whedon pissed off his boss one too many times. The previous year, after S4, word came down in the summer that they were cancelled -- which put all the crew and cast out of work, and they didn't have any time to get another show or work for the next year -- so would be out of work for the full next year. Whedon felt really bad about it. So in S5, some of the Buffy cast came over full time (Marsters and Harmony), and the ratings improved by 80%. So Whedon went up to the network sort of cocky after the 100th episode and said..."I need to know if we're renewed for S6."

Network: Eh, John Wells from ER is giving us a Dracula show, once we see how that tests, we'll let you know.

Whedon: No. I need to know now!

Network: If we tell you now, you're cancelled.

Whedon: Fine.

Network: Cancelled.

Whedon: sorry guys, I screwed up.

Note -- the John Wells Dracula Show tested really badly. If Whedon hadn't pushed they might have remained on the air.

Also it should be noted that it is NOT ratings that gets shows cancelled, it's other factors, such as advertisers. You want to get a show cancelled or renewed, figure out the advertisers. Ad dollars pay broadcast channel network exec's salaries. Subscriber dollars pay premium channel and streaming channel network exec salaries.

Roseanne got cancelled not because of ratings, but because her tweet pissed off the "advertisers" who most likely called the network and said -- we're pulling out. Bye now. Doesn't matter how great your ratings or how many people watch -- what matters is whether advertisers want to place ads on your show. Ads pay for the show's air time. It's always been like that...used to be worse. That's why they are careful about certain things -- do not piss off the advertising sponsor who pays our rent.

Comments

[shadowkat]

Internet - go HERE. So, do not feel sorry for Mr. Marsters, he has enough money to retire comfortably on. And he has a pretty trophy bride who is roughly twenty years his junior. (He even states at one point that after he kissed Buffy the women who were interested in him, were prettier. I saw him at a Ghost of a Robot performance in Farmingdale in roughly 2003 and the man was doing an impression of a Chip-en-Dales dancer without the strip tease. It was hilarious actually, because the act before him basically satirized Ghost in the Robot. And he was openly flirting with every teeny bopper in the audience. He's five to six years older than me, and when I saw him? I was in my late thirties. He also said, drunk, to a room filled of middle aged women who had paid $1000 to see him, that men his age preferred younger women to spread his seed. LOL! Oh dear.)

I love listening to him, but ...let's just say Joss isn't the only one who has lost his mojo and he'd be a hypocrite to be too judgemental of Joss Whedon, considering he most likely did some of the same things. (He hooked up with Mercedes McNabe who was MUCH younger and had a crush on Michellet Trachenberg. There's a hilarious Q&A, where Nicholas Brendan talks about the Buffy comics and how he doesn't like the Dawn/Xander pairing. It's far too young for him and James is basically trying to hide under the table.)

[ETA: All of that said? He's human and he's in Hollywood. I like him but..I see his flaws. And I'm happy we aren't in each other's lives. ;-) Anyhow, I do agree with what you said above.

I suspect it's a love-hate relationship; Joss made him do a few things he wasn't happy about, and now Joss has lost a bit of his mojo, maybe it's not so important to keep the love part to the forefront of his mind

Very true. I've seen him diss Joss out of the side of his mouth. And I'm willing to bet Charisma Carpenter and James Marsters bonded a bit over a mutual irritation with Whedon and SMG, and an admiration of David Boreanze.
The attempted rape almost killed him. And it wasn't necessary. Also Whedon and the writers liked to play mind-games with Marsters -- because Marsters was the most talented actor in the cast next to ASH. And very versatile. They got off on throwing things at him. Espenson admits it sort of in a Q&A, in which she says it's very interesting to see it from his perspective, but no, they had a plan and decided to see what they could come up with to stump him -- what crazy thing can we do to him next and can he do it? Marsters didn't realize how incredibly sadistic television writers, particularly frustrated television writers truly are until Buffy and Angel. I honestly think Whedon went to his trailer -- told him he had no idea what he was going to do with his character, went back to the writer's room and giggled about it. Fury: "Did you do it?" Whedon:"Oh yeah, and he buys it every time. He has no idea what we have planned." Laughs fiendishly. "I'm going to give him a soul and drive him insane and he's a method actor. Oh this is going to be soo much fun!" LOL!

[trepkos]

I don't feel sorry for him NOW, but the mind games you mention were not nice. 5 million - I could be comfortable with that! I hadn't heard him say anything about the Kai revelations about Joss - I just meant that Joss's writing seems to have gone downhill since Buffy. I don't think liaisons with other cast members is equivalent to Joss liaising with cast or crew. JM wasn't in a position of power over Mercedes, so I don't see a problem with that. Having a crush is not something you can control - only what you do with it. (I also heard it was Michelle who had the crush. Maybe it was both.) I met Patricia a few years ago - she is GORGEOUS, and seems like a lovely person. I'd marry her too! Boreanaz has done really well, hasn't he? He seemed so wooden at first on Buffy, and here he is, umpteen seasons of Bones under his belt, and now with another show ...

[shadowkat]

No, he's too smart to say anything nasty about Whedon or anyone he's worked for. He did say some things post Angel, but he's gotten smarter with age and he really knows how to play a crowd. Best Q&A that I've seen. Claire Krammer and Marsters have figured out how to play the crowd really well. They make quite a bit at those cons.