It went from being one of television’s worst-reviewed series to one of its best. But despite the raves for its gripping third season, “The Killing” struggled to grow its audience, and AMC confirmed its cancellation Tuesday.
“We have made the difficult decision not to move forward with a fourth season of The Killing,” said AMC’s statement. “We want to thank our great partners at Fox Television Studios, creator Veena Sud, an extraordinary cast and the dedicated fans who watched.”
The show, which had a promising start but quickly became a critical laughingstock, was initially cancelled after season two. A partnership with Netflix gave it a second life, however, and the show made another attempt to win fans over in its third season.
Fueled by a more compelling storyline, a breakthrough performance from Bex Taylor-Klaus, an acclaimed turn from Peter Sarsgaard and the continued chemistry of leads Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnaman, season three turned even the show’s harshest critics into believers.
Ratings did not improve, however, and by ending its season with 1.5 million viewers–a number just slightly better than that for its season two finale–“The Killing” did not make the case for a fourth season.