Why Was Eureka Cancelled and Could It Be Revived?

Eureka was a delightfully unique sci fi series that had a five-year run, but a sixth season was planned and a revival of the show just might work.

What Is It?

Deputy United States Marshal Jack Carter happens upon an odd little North Western town called Eureka while trying to return his rebellious teenage daughter to her mother’s home in Los Angeles. The place is populated with brilliant scientists working on super-secret experiments (which often get out of control), and when the local sheriff is inadvertently injured by one of these, Carter finds himself chosen to take over law enforcement in the town. And while Carter may not have the same level of IQ as most of the geniuses there, he makes up for that with common sense and down-to-Earth thinking.

Aired: 2006-12, The Sci Fi Channel/Syfy, 5 Seasons Totaling 77 Episodes

Starring: Colin Ferguson, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Joe Morton, Debrah Farentino, Jordan Danger, Ed Quinn

Created By: Andrew Cosby, Jaime Paglia

Why Was It Cancelled?


This rather unique series joined The Sci Fi Channel’s schedule in Summer 2006 and managed to stick around for five seasons and 77 episodes which is a rather healthy run compared to many shows today. The series finale wrapped things up rather nicely and did not leave the show on a cliffhanger, but a sixth season had originally been planned. Its numbers had dropped off during its fifth season (not disastrously, though) and the network’s new controlling partner Comcast decided to jettison it in favor of some of the newer (less expensive) entries in the pipeline. The sixth year would have been only about six episodes long, similar to what Syfy later did with Warehouse 13, but that was scrapped by network executives. Series producer Amy Berg had the following to say about the cancellation:

Everyone is asking why. It’s simple, really. We are the network’s golden child in every way, except profit margins. Fact is, #Eureka is an expensive show to make. And we could not maintain the quality of our show with the cuts it would take to make us profitable for Syfy’s new parent company [Comcast]. Our creative execs at Syfy fought hard to keep us. Trust me, they LOVE us. We just couldn’t make the numbers work.

The cancellation generated an uproar from the fans, and a campaign to save the show was put together, but network execs could not be swayed to bring Eureka back for another year.

Should It Be Revived?

Eureka was given the chance to wrap up its storylines which is a luxury that many sci fi shows have been denied. But this was a beloved genre entry, and there are many who would enjoy making a return trip to that North Western town. And the fact is that a revival of the show could work because even though most of the storylines were resolved, there are plenty more tales to tell in the town of Eureka. Colin Ferguson’s talent is sadly being wasted these days with Maytag commercials, so I’m guessing he would be interested in signing up as sheriff again. And I would bet that many of the other cast members could be lured back to the show as well. And perhaps they could transition to a Eureka: The Next Generation type of scenario, though they should definitely keep Ferguson onboard because he is the glue that holds everything together.

This show is owned by NBC Universal and it could come back on Syfy’s schedule, or it could be used as a subscription draw for Peacock. Eureka is a fan-favorite sci fi entry and would certainly draw back many of the original viewers and perhaps bring on some new ones. In addition, one more season gets the show to 90 total episodes which makes it much more attractive to the syndication market where it could live on for years in encore runs. Whether it is a one-off season to check back in on what the characters are up to now, or a setup for a whole new set of storylines, this makes sense from a creative and financial perspective. If fans of the show were to get something trending on the social networks, perhaps a return trip to Eureka would be possible.

Where Can You Watch It?

The entire series has been released on DVD and Blu-ray, though the DVD has gone out of print and is fetching pretty high prices from third-party sellers. The Blu-ray is available at a reasonable price, though. Eureka is also currently available for streaming on Amazon’s Prime Video.

Did you watch Eureka and would you support fan efforts to bring the show back? Chime in with your thoughts in the comments below.



Be sure to follow the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site  for breaking news and updates. And for the latest news and discussions on sci fi and fantasy television, follow r/SciFiTV

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Author: johnnyjay

22 thoughts on “Why Was Eureka Cancelled and Could It Be Revived?

  1. Great show that is sorely missed by many, including myself. That said, I’m not sure Colin Ferguson would really be onboard with starring in a reboot. In a bit of this interview from years back he seemed quite content with putting it to bed after so many seasons of long, long hours. He also alluded to being financially “set” thanks to the success of the show. Granted this interview is from quite some time ago and hearts and minds can certainly change.

    Colin Ferguson on Eureka
    https://youtu.be/iWeBhlWKRXM?t=138

    1. Completely agree. Eureka should be on TV today. Whomever makes these kind of decisions needs to understand better what people want vs. what they are showing today. Eureka was a top-quality show and really needs to be brought back again. I re-watched all of them just recently and was really upset when it ended… again.

  2. What was great was that it was a pure entertainment show.
    None of the woke crap we are forced on us today brought by pandering to all the DEI madness groups.

    1. I agree! I’m tired of these new shows these days so I find myself going back to watching Eureka again. It never gets old! ☺️

  3. You take a good shows like eureka off air and ending up putting some stupid shows on that doesn’t make sense and probably spend alot of money stupid shows. eureka was a fun show to watch I wish you would bring it back. You make money off of it when it airs. It was a good clean show without all the cursing and sex. Not all people like all the bad language and sex.

  4. This show has gotten me through some hard times. I love the interactions and the story lines. I am craving new episodes all the time. PLEASE bring it back!

  5. I have watched the whole series and am about to watch it again!! Such wonderful story lines and great clean entertainment throughout. Please bring it back – nothing in the sci-fi genre comes close to what Eureka gave us!!!

  6. I’ve watched all of Eureka twice. It is such a great show! The inventions in the show have come to light. The characters are amazing- the idea of a sci fi town is desirable. I wish another season or another way of continuing Eureka was in the makes. I love that it was good, clean episodes that didn’t make things uncomfortable or awkward while watching with family. That’s not easy to find this day and age.

  7. I absolutely loved Eureka in fact I’ve watched the whole show several times now and I love it. I truely wish they would bring the show back they surely have plenty of Ideas to use for the stroy lines. They cant have used up all there Imagineations on the show. So if it does return I’ll be the first to watch ever new episode and Thank You up Front if you do make new episodes to watch as I might be to busy watching to say Thank You later.

  8. Please bring this back! I LOVED this show and I need to see how the couples worked out (Fargo and Holly, Zane and Joe, Henry and Grace, Allison and Jack). And what happened to Zoe? Kevin? Sarah? I have so many questions.

  9. Yes! Yes! Yes! I would love to see you bring it back. It never should have been cancelled in the first place and I don’t think you would have any problem getting the original cast to come back. Tell me what I need to do, as a fan, to get this in action and I’ll do it.🙏🤩

  10. I love this show so much! I would love for the show to come back. Like I would go and pay a subscription if I must that’s how much I love this show!

  11. I’d love it if the MayTag whaser and dryer came back as Carter. I just rewatched the series and still feel a great sense of loss at the last episode. I had forgotten that Gaius Boltar bought the town (allowing for a reboot less the anoying DOD). I really miss Henry. It felt like he was my friend. lol. I don’t know if the cast cares to return, but if they would, it would be great. So they are twelve years older. It’d still be great… but Fargo and his girlfriend would need to come back. Wishful thinking, I guess… But I did wish for Futurama to come back, and it’s back baby!

  12. Watching it again with my wife and kids. The first time we watched it was just me and my wife. Now we get to enjoy it with our kids as well. We’re half way through season 5 now, really wish they made more seasons. A reboot would be amazing

  13. Eureka is my escape! I love the science and ridiculous things the characters get into. Please please please revive this incredible show!!!

    1. This show was awesome me and my wife still watch the show. It never fails you find something you really like and then they cancel. Come on find a way to bring the show back.

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