After seven seasons on air, Station 19 has come to a close. Why was Station 19 cancelled? Here’s everything we know about why ABC ended the beloved firefighter drama.
Station 19, a spin-off of Grey’s Anatomy, follows the personal and professional lives of firefighters at the Seattle Fire Department’s fictional Station 19, from the captain to the newest recruit. The main character is Andrea “Andy” Herrera, a the newly appointed captain of Station 19 and the stubborn daughter of the late Captain Pruitt Herrera. Executive produced by Shonda Rhimes, the series also features Dr. Benjamin “Ben” Warren, a surgical resident at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital and Dr. Miranda Bailey’s husband, who left Grey’s Anatomy in Season 13 to become a firefighter.
Deadline first reported in December 2023 that Station 19 will end after Season 7. Because of the now-resolved WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes that delayed production and moved the seventh season to 2024, the fan-favorite first responder drama will now conclude with only 10 episodes.
Heading into the show’s final season, there are a few other significant changes to note. First, showrunners Zoanne Clack and Peter Paige will succeed Krista Vernoff, who exited last season. Station 19’s time slot has also been moved from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Thursday and will now air after Grey’s Anatomy rather than serve as its lead-in.
“For seven seasons Station 19 has been a highlight of the ABC lineup thanks to Shonda and Betsy’s incredible vision, beloved characters and compelling storytelling,” said Craig Erwich, president of Disney Television Group, in a statement. “With Zoanne and Peter at the helm of the upcoming farewell season, we have so much to look forward to, most notably the celebration of the show’s milestone 100th episode.”
Station 19 was positioned as ABC’s No. 2 drama series behind Grey’s, so why is the popular show ending on ABC? Keep reading to why Station 19 was cancelled.
Why was Station 19 cancelled?
Why was Station 19 cancelled We do know that it was a network decision. “It came down to ABC wanting to save money in a push for an economical schedule balancing scripted fare with reality and live sports,” sources told Deadline of the cancelation of Station 19 and The Good Doctor, both of which are ending after seven seasons.
According to a report by Deadline in January 2024, Station 19 — as well as network shows like Young Sheldon, The Good Doctor, and SEAL Team — were all canceled after their seventh seasons due to declining viewership and increased financial pressure in the linear TV business. “A lot of it comes down to budgets for most series,” a source told the magazine at the time.
The magazine also explained that, as a show runs or more seasons, networks have to pay “full freight” the cost of production, which makes seasons past Season 6 expensive to license. Typically, series regular actor contracts are also for six years and often extended to seven in a salary negotiation after Season 2 or 4. This means that many shows must make new cast deals after Season 7 that could also come with expensive salary increases.
Deadline also reported that ABC canceled Station 19, as well as its medical drama, The Good Doctor, to save the cash so that it could have a more economical schedule that balanced both scripted series with reality shows and live sports. The decision was to lean more into reality TV only became more clear after ABC successful fall schedule with reality TV shows like The Golden Bachelor and Dancing With the Stars.
New showrunners Zoanne Clack and Peter Paige reportedly got the call just two days into filming Season 7. “Basically, we got the news and were like, ‘Get the cast in, get the writers, get the crew assembled… Make sure they’re all going to meet us at lunch!’ Then we raced, raced, raced to tell them before there were any leaks,” Paige told TVLine about the moment they received the news. “We wanted to make sure they heard it from us.” Clack added that they were grateful to be able to tell the cast and crew in person, but noted that they did so “through waves of tears.”
The execs also revealed that there were several story ideas that they had to abandon. “We definitely had some story ideas that we had to let go of. Like, there was a really complex arson storyline that we’d never done on the show. We had to say, ‘OK, well, that’s going to be a Season Never story,'” Paige said.
Executive producer Shonda Rhimes reacted to the show’s cancelation shortly after the news broke. “Grateful for an unforgettable run. A heartfelt salute to the exceptional cast whose brilliance brought the characters to life and to the viewers who continued to make it possible!” she captioned two photos of the Station 19 cast on Instagram. “Thank you for the magic, the moments, and the memories. #station19.”
ABC was also not the only network to pull the plug on top-performing shows this broadcast season. Over at CBS, Blue Bloods was canceled after 14 seasons, while Young Sheldon and S.W.A.T. were canceled after seven. Joining the slew of cancelations is also NBC’s La Brea and Magnum P.I. (S.W.A.T., for its part, was also renewed for an eighth season following its cancellation due to its surprise popularity on Netflix.)
Station 19 streams on Hulu.
For more on Station 19, check out our gallery below of the best firefighter TV shows, from Fire Country to Chicago Fire.
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