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TL;DR:

  • Lifetime’s The Bad Seed Returns won’t air as originally scheduled on Memorial Day. 
  • Star McKenna Grace says the release had been delayed following the May 24 school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
  • Lifetime is exploring a new airdate for later in 2022.  
McKenna Grace as Emma, looking in a mirror, in the Lifetime movie 'The Bad Seed Returns'
McKenna Grace in ‘The Bad Seed Returns’ | Lifetime

Lifetime had delayed the release of The Bad Seed Returns following the May 24 school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. The movie, which is a sequel to 2018’s The Bad Seed, was scheduled to air on Monday, May 30. Star McKenna Grace said in a tweet that she is not comfortable promoting the movie – which focuses on a 15-year-old girl with a murderous streak – in light of the recent tragedy at Robb Elementary School, where 19 children and two teachers were killed by an 18-year-old gunman. 

McKenna Grace says she doesn’t think this is the ‘right time’ to release the movie 

Grace plays Emma, a seemingly normal girl with a very dark side, in both The Bad Seed and The Bad Seed Returns. In the original movie, her character murdered several people, including a classmate. In the sequel, she’s living with her aunt Angela after the death of her father (Rob Lowe) in the original movie. But when her aunt’s husband and a new girl at school begin to question Emma’s behavior, she has “no choice but to slip back to her old ways and take care of her enemies by any means necessary,” per Lifetime’s description of the film. 

Given the dark subject matter, Grace said she didn’t feel right promoting the movie at this time 

“In the wake of the recent tragedy in my home state of Texas, we have decided to delay the release of The Bad Seed Returns,” The Handmaid’s Tale actor said in a statement shared on Twitter. “Lifetime and everyone involved are in agreement.” 

“I don’t feel comfortable promoting the film this week and we don’t think Monday is the right time to release it,” she added. 

Lifetime confirms ‘The Bad Seed Returns’ will not air on Memorial Day 

Lifetime confirmed in an email to Showbiz Cheat Sheet that The Bad Seed Returns will not air on Memorial Day as scheduled. The network “will explore a new airdate for later this year,” a spokesperson said. 

In her Twitter message, Grace said that the shooting in Ulvade brought to mind memories of the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. Twenty children and six adults were killed in that incident. 

“I was in first grade when Sandy Hook happened … and it feels like not much has changed since then,” she wrote. “I remember my parents teaching me emergency action plans for going to church or the movies.” 

Grace, who is 15, went on to urge people to donate to families of recent shooting victims. She also pointed people to the website for The Jed Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting the emotional health of teens and young adults and preventing suicide, as well as Everytown for Gun Safety, which works to prevent gun violence. 

‘FBI’ season finale also pulled after Texas school shooting 

Zeeko Zaki wearing an FBI vest in the 'FBI' Season 4 finale
Zeeko Zaki as Special Agent Omar Adom “OA” Zidan in ‘FBI’ | David M. Russell/CBS ©2022 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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Lifetime is not the only network making programming changes in the wake of the Texas school shooting. CBS also decided to pull the FBI Season 4 finale, which was originally scheduled to air on Tuesday. The episode, titled “Prodigal Son,” features the show’s characters working to stop a school shooting. A new air date for the episode has not yet been announced. 

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