'Hap and Leonard' Canceled at Sundance TV

The anthology starring James Purefoy and Michael Kenneth Williams was the cable network’s highest-rated original series.

Sundance TV is making a big change.

The AMC Networks-owned cabler has canceled prized anthology Hap and Leonard after three seasons.

Based on the book series by Joe R. Lansdale, the author broke the news on social media late Monday. “Hap and Leonard officially canceled. Sundance’s highest-rated show, 100 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Three seasons wraps it up, dudes. It was an honor to have worked with the folks on the show, actors, crew, writers and thanks for putting up with grumpy me. Wish there were more seasons, but hey, we got three, and they were very fine indeed,” he wrote.

The drama followed two lifelong best friends: Hap Collins (James Purefoy), an East Texas white guy with a weakness for Southern women, and Leonard Pine (Michael Kenneth Williams), a gay, black Vietnam vet with a hot temper. The most recent third season took inspiration from The Two-Bear Mambo, the third installment of Lansdale’s book series. Season one was inspired by the first Hap and Leonard novel Savage Season, with the sophomore outing based on Mucho Mojo.

Showrunner John Wirth also took to social media to thank those involved with the drama while also confirming the cancellation of his series that ran for a total of 18 episodes. Season three wrapped in April with 220,000 total live-same-day viewers.

After getting into the scripted space with fellow critical darlings Rectify and Top of the Lake, Sundance’s scripted roster largely features syndicated programming like M*A*S*H and Law & Order.

The news comes hours after parent company AMC Networks shuffled leadership at comedy-focused cabler IFC with president Jennifer Caserta moving to become chief transformation officer of the parent company. Charlie Collier serves as president and GM of Sundance TV and AMC, the latter of which is home to scripted dramas including Better Call Saul and The Walking Dead.