As reported by Deadline, Hannibal-with-a-dad drama Prodigal Son has been canceled by Fox after two seasons. Deadline points out that it was a “true bubble show,” given the fact that Fox liked it “creatively” but that it was tough to actually make the show given Michael Sheen’s difficult schedule and the fact that he’s pretty crucial to the plot (he wasn’t the eponymous prodigal son, but he was Hannibal Dad). The ratings were also “pretty modest,” ranking among the worst of Fox’s current dramas, but Deadline says it does better digitally—or it did do better, because now it’s been killed (like the many victims of The Surgeon, the scary serial killer name of Michael Sheen’s character).
The series was about a former FBI profiler working with the NYPD to catch a serial killer whose methods were similar to those of his serial killer father, forcing him to reconnect with his dear ol’ dad so they can begrudgingly bond over violent mysteries on a weekly basis. Tom Payne played the prodigal son, Lou Diamond Phillips played his NYPD boss, and Halston Sage played his sister.