Image Credit: MTV
It was one of the most talked about new dramas of the past year, and MTV’s most-discussed scripted show ever.
Yet the controversial Skins will not be back for a second season.
“Skins is a global television phenomenon that, unfortunately, didn’t connect with a US audience as much as we had hoped,” said MTV in a statement. “We admire the work that the series’ creator Bryan Elsley did in adapting the show for MTV, and appreciate the core audience that embraced it.”
When MTV first announced the acclaimed UK dramedy would get a U.S. revamp, fans were skeptical an ad-supported cable network could maintain the show’s rebellious and graphic nature.
Ratings rose for the show’s March finale to 1.2 million viewers and the series outperformed last summer’s first season of The Hard Times of R.J. Berger — which was renewed. But Skins was inaccurately bashed as “child pornography” by the Parents Television Council and bled advertisers scared off by the headlines and boycott threats.
The show’s creator had defended the series as a “rather old fashioned television series,” and says its content is “a very serious attempt to get to the roots of young people’s lives. It tries to tell the truth. Sometimes that truth can be a little painful to adults and parents.”
Read more:
MTV’s ‘Skins’ rises for finale, but will TV’s most controversial drama return?
‘Skins’ star Sofia Black D’Elia: ‘I’m much more concerned with the opinions of the teenagers of America than the parents’
‘Skins’ creator on controversy: ‘Skins is in fact rather old fashioned’
It wasn’t even good.The controversy gave them publicity and now that there is no controversy no one watched it.
Do people still watch MTV? wow.
I’m sorry, but I hate comments like these. The last season of JERSEY SHORE had reached 8m in certain episodes. Think before you post…
And the fact that it did is just sad.
@ Tom Only morons watch MTV nowadays. They really should get rid of the word ‘music’ in its title.
Yea alot of ppl do
Despite these creeper EW writer whining about the cancellation, nobody else cares.
+1 for Tom’s comment. Mtv lost the script way back when it stopped being about music.
@Ruby. What an astute, hilarious observation that no one has ever made before!
@ruby: They did–about three years ago. MTV doesn’t actually officially stand for anything anymore.
@ Ruby. I watch America’s Best Dance Crew which is on MTV and I don’t consider myself a moron.
AGREE! I couldn’t sit through a whole episode.
MTV is to music what KFC is to chicken. I remember the day MTV went on the air…I was in high school. It was a fun time watching MUSIC videos. Nowadays MTV is pure trash…I don’t watch it, but it gets enough publicity to know shows like Jersey Shore, 16 and knocked up, etc. have gone so low there apparently is no depth to how low they’ll go to promote their network. It’s truly disgusting.
UK Skins was good, US Skins was crap!
That’s usually the way of tv—the Brit/Oz version is brilliant and the domestic version has rapping, farting talking monkeys who moonwalk to “Can’t Touch This,” because focus groups of obese r-tards think it’s funny.
Amen! I won’t watch any US adaptations of British/Australian shows.Something seems to go horribly wrong. Kath & Kim with Molly Shannon!?
You guys cannot say all US shows adapted from the UK/AUSTRALIAN originals are bad bcuz they’re not, (i.e. SHAMELESS) on SHOWTIME! The funniest, craziest, most entertaining show I’ve seen in a while.
Moonwalking monkeys would have been far more entertaining than the U.S. version of Skins.
However, saying that American remakes of British and Australian shows are always terrible is a ridiculous overstatement.
Shelly is right that plenty of American versions of British shows have been critically acclaimed. In addition to Shameless, there’All in the Family, Life on Mars, the U.S. version of The Office, Sanford and Son, etc.
And there have been very few American versions of Australian TV shows.
So true Rara-I hate the US version of Top Gear! US versions are usually always crap
The Office, US version is better than the UK original.
I’m on season four of UK Shameless, and when I tried to watch the US version I found it unwatchable. After three episodes I stopped. Loved UK Skins. MTV should just air that. People will watch.
US Office and Queer as Folk are better than the UK originals.
I don’t want to live in a world where farting, moonwalking monkeys aren’t funny.
US Office better than UK Office? No way! What’s wrong with you people? I guess you need your funny delivered with a hammer over the head. The UK version was subtle, almost uncomfortable at time…which made it hilarious! And the US version couldn’t even send off the boss properly…they made it warm and fuzzy. What a joke!
@eric w.
Life on Mars was critically acclaimed?
UK Skins was good series 1 and 2, but the others haven’t been so great.
You are an utter moron if you think the American version of “The Office” is better than the U.K. version.
Gen 3 is fantastic.
@ Brad – The US version of the office can’t be compared to UK. Its still running and Ricky Gervais is one of many producers… I think the US Office is well thought out and acted… Unless you have watched all the episodes, your only getting 30% of the jokes. Talk about subtle.
Do not agree wat so ever
No it wasn’t
Oh good, now I can forget it existed and rewatch the UK version over and over again.
I thought it was cancelled months ago.
I tried watching this show, but never made it through an entire episode. Glad it’s gone.
did you watch the UK version? You realy should, its really good.. apart from the last series lol
It’ one thing to make shocking television but atleast make it good. The US one was far more tame than its (well-written) UK counterpart but it was all shock-value without the decent writing or acting to go along with it.
I agree completely. I also hate that MTV is saying its ‘a global television phenomenon that, unfortunately, didn’t connect with a US audience’. No, the original is a global phenomenon that would’ve connected brilliantly with their audience, but they had to go and recreate it, hoping to make money off something they could label as their own, ‘original programming’. If they had just bought the rights to show the original on their network, teenagers would have been on it like white on rice. Instead, they tried to recreate it with a cast that was terrible and didn’t connect, and none of the heart and soul of the original. Bollocks.
You all forget that USA television has to answer to this fascist organization called the FCC. UK *Skins* can’t run on network tv in USA….shows with that content are banned in the interest of *public well-being*.
dumb show, bad actors. good riddance.
Yes. So glad.
No surprise, it can’t even compare to the original
UK skins had skin (nudity), US didn’t. That’s why no one watched. Just like MTV to sanitze it for Americans.
So THAT was what it was missing! Too bad nude teens would basically be illegal on US TV. Girls gone wild indeed.
No. The UK skins firs two seasons had actors who could act and interesting storylines.
Spot on Lemon
WTF?! this show was so good and they didn’t even do anything that bad!!! There’s alot worse stuff on tv, I effing hate that parent television council, they didn’t say anything bout glee when santana and Britney were talking about scissoring and had gay stuff but this show was bashed, ugh I’m so mad
i agree sooo much wit u
I believe you meant to write “with you.”
yes they did, they wrote a report claiming it wasnt suitable for children.
Agree all the way
I LOVE the effing parent television council – they managed to get this piece of crap off the air! Do you think they can do the same for that massive POS fake “reality” show Jersey Shore?
stfu because jersey shore is going to stay on I hope !
I never watched the show, yet here I am commenting on this article.
Same here
OMG! I love that show, it was my world, and u guys r talkin crap about it! i love it! and now they r canceling it! :`(
watch the original! so much better.
The original British version is streaming on Netflix and is terrific. I guarantee you’ll like it even more than the one they canceled.
I forgot this show existed.
Yet you posted about it.
Tell me about it Antonio. I loved this show, and I loved the UK version too. The characters were endearing, the finale was so so so entertaining. This is such a shame and I can’t believe they didn’t renew this.
The PTC will take credit for this in 3…2…1…
They already have on Twitter…
How did the PTC help the cancellation of the show? They created enormous hype around the show and got people talking about it. If the PTC hadn’t intervened, it probably would have lasted just a few episodes.
They scared off advertisers. If a show can’t get advertisers, it won’t stay on the air, no matter how good it is or how well rated.
I’m not one bit surprised. I’m a huge fan of the UK version, and even as a 15-year-old, I could see that this version was absolute crap. It was bad, and no one watched it. That’s that. It didn’t help that the PTC was constantly fighting it.