Good News For Families: Wicked City Canceled

Written by PTC | Published November 16, 2015

ABC’s serial killer drama Wicked City is the first new show of the fall season to be canceled…and the PTC played a part in its demise. Billed as “a dark, hedonistic party…set on the sexy Sunset Strip back when there were no consequences and bad behavior ran rampant,” the first episode of Wicked City alone featured oral sex, necrophilia, and a severed head, with content on subsequent episodes even more gory and graphic. Clearly, the program’s plummeting ratings since its premiere three weeks ago indicate that this toxic cocktail of sex and gore is not what viewers were looking for from the Disney-owned ABC network. Wicked City‘s ratings plunge has been steeper than any other new series; it the lowest-rated program on an English-language broadcast network last Tuesday. Starting this week ABC replaced Wicked City with the family-friendly reality show Shark Tank. Immediately following the first episode, the PTC reached out to sponsors and urged them to reconsider using their advertising dollars to fund Wicked City. Several of the advertisers contacted did not sponsor the show in subsequent weeks. “After Wicked City’s premeire, we were quick to warn audiences about its content; quick to contact advertisers and enlist their help; they were quick to respond; and the show was quick to be canceled,” said PTC President Tim Winter. “We are grateful to the sponsors who listened to the concerns of families, and chose not to continue sponsoring Wicked City.”