Why Was ‘The Bold Type’ Canceled? Here’s Why Season 6 Isn’t Happening
Freeform has in recent years garnered a large viewership with its lineup of hit shows, including Grown-Ish and The Bold Type.
The Bold Type became popular due to its diversity and representation of women in the workforce. The show that found inspiration from the real-life editor of Cosmopolitan magazine Joanna Coles concluded its fifth season in June 2021. Fans found it hard to say goodbye to the trio of female leads as the network announced that season 5 would be the last we will ever see of The Bold Type. But why was the hit show canceled? Here’s why season 6 isn’t happening.
How the pandemic affected season 4 of ‘The Bold Type’
The Bold Type hit screens in 2017, and it featured three women working at Scarlet, a fictional magazine. Aisha Dee’s character Kat Edison is the head of social media in the company. At the same time, her two best friends, Sutton Brady and Jane Sloan, are both assistants waiting for their big break in editorials and fashion.
Throughout the show, the characters have accomplished their goals while facing different obstacles along the way. Kat uses her social media skills to help those around her while Jane climbs the corporate ladder and Sutton becomes a high-profile stylist. Their personal lives also experience growth.
When the pandemic hit, the series was already on its fourth leg. In March, the showrunners announced that the production of the show would be taking a break. The suspension came about three weeks before filming was almost done. At the time, the cast and crew had already filmed six out of the eight remaining episodes. The fourth season returned in June and wrapped up in July 2020. The network renewed the show for its final season culminating in six episodes.
Why was ‘The Bold Type’ canceled?
Freeform gave the green light for filming to begin on The Bold Type. However, the announcement came with terrible news as the network announced that the season would be it’s last. The show’s final bow would have six episodes, a significant cut from the average 10-episode run the show has had in past seasons.
The network has remained mum about the official reason for the show’s ending, but fans speculate that it might have had something to do with the character’s journey coming to a natural end. Newsweek also theorized that the show’s cancellation might have been due to its declining ratings. The site reported that the show’s fourth season had a 32% rating decline compared to its third season.
Season 4 ended with fans left wondering what would become of Sutton and Richard’s marriage while Jane struggled to balance her work and personal life with Scott. Fans hoped that the finale would explore Sutton trying to patch things up with her husband while Jane finally becomes Editor-in-Chief. Kat also reunited with her will-they-won’t-they girlfriend, Adena.
What do the actors think of the show’s ending
Ahead of the show’s final episode, actor Stephen Conrad Moore teased that the ending will leave fans “satisfied.” Moore said, “you will feel satisfied but not in that ‘Disney fairy tale’ kind of way where it’s just wrapped up. I think it’s satisfied in the way of, ‘This is how life is.’ Life is incomplete at times. Life is hopeful.”
Katie Stevens, who plays Jane, loved the ending her character received, saying, “Jane ends up exactly where she was always meant to end up– I’m really happy with where the writers have taken these stories and where we’ve left these girls. I think that in a really beautiful way, we leave it so that fans can daydream about what happens after that final scene closes.”
