The ABC Avalon series, featuring Scream actress Neve Campbell, got cancelled. Despite the drama receiving a straight-to-series order from the network this past February, according to TVLine, ABC has cancelled and isn’t moving further with it.
Based on a short novel by Michael Connelly, the television series featured Campbell’s character, Detective Nicole Searcy of the Los Angeles Sheriff Department. No career-driven Los Angeles police officer wants the job that Searcy held in the television series, which was to run a small office on Catalina Island. A “career-defining mystery that challenges all she knows about herself and the island” eventually engulfs the Sheriff.
The series’ cancellation was not explained, however it could be related to the fact that the pilot had only finished filming earlier this month. ABC might have been dissatisfied with what it saw and felt it would be preferable to move on to another possible project after cutting its losses. Given the earlier seasons of Avalon, this news seems odd. Avalon seemed to have all the makings of a successful mystery series. The drama still has a chance to be picked up by another network, so there’s a potential that the series may air even if we may never know why ABC opted to pass on it.
Given the skill working on the project, it’s shocking. The Lincoln Lawyer, Campbell’s other current smash show that Kelley writes and executive produces, was slated to be created by David E. Kelley. Connelly’s writing also served as an inspiration for that specific series. Having said that, this is particularly depressing news for any Campbell supporter. The actress, who is best known for horror movies like Scream and The Craft, has been battling for years to emerge from Ghostface’s shadow. Her performance in The Lincoln Lawyer has demonstrated that the actress is more than simply an iconic Scream queen.