By providing your information, you agree to our Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy. We use vendors that may also process your information to help provide our services. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA Enterprise and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Starz is giving The Rook the hook.
The sci-fi series starring Emma Greenwell and Olivia Munn will not return for Season 2 at the network, TVLine has learned.
Loosely based on the 2012 novel by Daniel O’Malley, The Rook followed Greenwell’s Myfanwy, an agent who works for a super-secret branch of the British government that handles matters of Extreme Variant Abilities. Myfanwy awoke in the series premiere without any knowledge of who she was (or what she could do), and spent much of the first season trying to figure out which of her contemporaries was plotting to kill her.
The Rook‘s eight-episode freshman run thus summer averaged 225,000 total viewers and a 0.04 demo rating, ranking sixth among Starz’s nine current dramas.
[pmc_inline_gallery]
Some readers who’d enjoyed The Rook in its original form took issue with the TV adaptation’s change in tone; where the novel had a light, fantastical touch, the Starz series went for a more realistic, gritty take on the supernatural spy story.
Do you have thoughts on The Rook‘s cancellation? Make sure to let us know in the comments!
Not suprising
The rook TV show on Starz was hard to follow at first (didn’t read the book),and for a super powers show lacked alot of action. But, the last few episodes put it all together in my opinon, and left us wanting more for the new season upcoming? Was sorry to hear it’s not coming back. Starz get it together! 8 episode seasons? Really? Do at least 10! How about some marketing?
You seriously dropped the ball on this one.
Should have followed the book closer.
eh…
The book was funny. I read it 3 times. The show, not so much. They should have made it more like Killing Eve.
good. that show sucked
Not surprised. I didn’t even bother to finish it, it was so dry and boring.
Damn it I loved this show. I don’t need a show to shadow a book exactly.
Exactly! I loved this show too 🖤 So sad it’s cancelled
What?!? I am not happy about this cancellation. This was a different perspective in television. Sad to see it go. Outlander ends bye bye stars!
I loved it as well…. Outlander is all that holds me with Starz now.
well about freaking time they announce the cancellation cause i was starting to think it was a limited series thing even though that cliffhanger implied otherwise
honestly im somewhat glad of this news cause i thought the first and only season was mostly boring, they barely used their powers and the characters came off as bland and boring, i dont understand where this idea that they need to take people with powers and to differentiate from costumed superheroes who have a sort of imaginative vibe going on. Its like lets take john and jane smith, the most boring generic couple and give them powers and let them barely use them, that is what this show felt like.
You are clearly unable to recognize quality media. Please just go back under your rock.
I am pissed!!! I love that show. Now need to keep Starz now! The book was ok but liked the show better.
I liked it. I loved the Gestalt.
Counterpart was an incredible show. Starz should have renewed that instead of wasting resources on The Rook
NOOOOO! I get that the tone and pacing of the first season was somewhat off, but it has such great potential.
Yes love it
Bravo! You are right! And they gave it literally no promotion! It’s almost as if they wanted it to fail!
That’s Stars got you I think. They did the same with black sails. Hardly any hype but that was an incredible drama better than games of thrones such a shame it all comes down to marketing.
We really enjoyed The Rook ; it was Smart & Different than all the other tv shows out there. You had to use your brain to figure out what was happening;the general public doesn’t seem to like anything where they have to use there brain and actually think about the situation being played out “sad”.
i highly disagree on the rook being smart and different
It was smart and different, so…
i still disagree
it was a very basic concept, as for being different, i also think not
Well, what other shows are like it? Just wondering, because I haven’t seen any. Maybe you could enlighten me?
heroes, alphas, shadowhunters, luke cage, jessica jones, the gifted
You forgot about The ☂ Umbrella Academy, The Runaways, Mutant X, The Boys, No Ordinary Family, Iron 👊🏻 Fist, etc, etc!
some of those i think take on the cliche superhero name and costume
👌🏼🖤
Slow boring bad pacing took forever to make any sense.. had hoped for it but it was a chore to watch
mouth breather is all im going to say, poor taste maybe
Now she can return to Shameless’ final season!
this sucks cause i have yet to have a sci fi/fantasy show on starz that i actually like, i thought the rook sucked, american gods sucks, there is also outlander but i cant find that entertaining, im not into time travel
im not aware of any other of these types of shows on starz
Garbage show.
Actually, it was mostly a very good show that needed a few easy tweaks.
Not surprised. I turned it off during the first episode. A bore and a chore.
After watching S1, I read The Rook. It’s the first time I can say the TV show was much better than the book. The book set it up that the EVAs had surfaced in the 1600s and countries had been conscripting children since then. It’s absurd that they could operate on the DL for hundreds of years. The show was really great, I’m sad they’re not continuing it.
you’re talking like everyone knew about the evas in the show, i dont ever recall that
plus people with powers are not hidden from society, anything from circus “freaks”, to area 51 conspiracies, or just people with viral videos showing off their special talents, the whole world knows about superhumans, its more like the willingness to accept it as real and not fake
People did know about the EVA’s. I just think your (tommymikaelson) ability to comprehend is a little lacking. Just like people knows there is human trafficking going on in the world. Just because it’s not in plain sight doesn’t mean it’s not there.
yeah okay, i dont get your point
I’m so bummed! I loved this show! I was really hoping for a season 2.
Me too
Darn it! I really enjoyed the show and thought there were a lot of good options for a season two — especially around the character of Gestalt. Gestalt was far and away the most interesting character in the series.
For the best. Boring characters, boring 2 dimensional actors. Boring “finale”. Tired overall. Boring boring boring.
i agree, the characters were boring and generic
like as much as i love nbcs heroes, it maybe to blame for this trend, lets take all the costumes and creativity out of superheroes and just make them bland average joes
plus the show focused way more on the relationships and a mystery that went nowhere over the superpower aspect, i hate that kind of story with a passion, i really hate it
Anyone who read the brilliant and hilarious novel this series was based on has to have been disappointed. They should have let Stephanie Myers (Twilight) produce it as originally planned. Instead they gave it to the humor-deficient producers of Bones, who made it into a procedural instead of a witty fantasy as it was originally written. Like giving Good Omens to the producers of SVU. Should have been more like SYFY’s The Magicians in tone. A great opportunity missed. There’s a HUGE audience for well-done fantasy, but you need to let people who GET FANTASY transfer the writer’s vision to the screen.
I don‘t know the book so I cannot compare bit I really liked the show and the characters.
So sad! Just when it started getting so exciting! So much potential!
So disappointed to hear the rook has not been rescheduled for season two on Starz.
Any chance someone else might pick this great show up for season two?
Just finished season 1… a great series. Really wished they’d decided on a season 2. If this had been advertised better the take up would have been great. I found it by accident!