Spike TV cancels Stephen King’s ‘The Mist’

As has been the case with his entire career, Stephen King’s movie and television success have been hit-and-miss.

For every successful movie like It, there has been a flop like The Dark Tower. For every entertaining TV show like Mr. Mercedes, there is a critically derided series like The Mist.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, after barely pulling in 800,000 viewers a week by the end of its first season, Spike TV has announced that they have canceled The Mist. This cancellation means that the TV series – whether it meant to or not – ended with a downer ending, similar to the Frank Darabont movie from 2007.

Part of the reason that Spike TV canceled the Stephen King adaptation was due to bad ratings. Another reason was bad reviews, as even Stephen King fans complained about the quality of the show. Much like The Dark Tower movie, a lot changed in The Mist, taking action away from a supermarket and instead featuring hotbed topics and drama surrounding people in an entire town.

Another reason that Spike TV axed The Mist was that they are rebranding into the Paramount Network, something they hope is a little more prestigious than the male-oriented Spike TV. Three “high-end” scripted series that is coming includes The Weinstein’s Yellowstone, the miniseries Waco, and the adaptation of the cult movie Heathers.

As for The Mist, much like the Darabont movie, the show ends on a downer. In the film…

(SPOILERS AHEAD)

…there was the death of one of the major characters that turns out to be unnecessary. In the TV show, it appears that they escaped the town only to find there was a greater danger down the road. With no season two, it will be that final danger that fans will remember.

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At least fans of Stephen King’s The Mist still have that underrated spectacularly horrific movie to enjoy.