Mike & Molly has been a solid performer on CBS for years and years now, but over the past few seasons the network has had trouble finding a slot in its cluttered schedule for the Melissa McCarthy and Billy Gardell comedy series. While CBS hasn't officially announced Mike & Molly is ending after the upcoming sixth season airs, the cast and crew have already announced the show is over, and now we know the real reason the long-running series got the axe. It's pretty complex, but it has to do with Mike & Molly being a Warner Bros.-owned comedy and the contracts on the show running out.
In short, the contracts for most people involved with Mike & Molly run out on February 1st. Since the show was pushed to mid-season and won't premiere until January, however, a decision on whether or not to renew the show won't take place until after that date. Because of this, cast members will be free to start pursuing their own projects, which will create a ton of uncertainty. So, rather than create the potential of the show returning with less cast members or create the potential of _Mike & Molly_spending this season setting up more episodes that will never happen, Chuck Lorre and company decided to cut their losses and treat Season 6 like the final year. That way the show will go out on its own terms with a proper goodbye.
Deadline reports that there have been problems with finding a slot for the show for a while. This fall marked the third year in a row that CBS opted to keep Mike & Molly off of the network's fall TV schedule. This year, instead of simply premiering late, CBS also took the show's full, 22-episode order and chopped it down to only 13 episodes. That already was bad enough news, so to find out the series is basically cancelled and the cast and crew are already looking to take on new TV---and in Melissa McCarthy's case, movie---roles, just adds an extra layer of suck.
We first learned Mike & Molly was on the way out the door just a few days ago, when series actress Roni Reed, who plays Peggy, made the announcement on social media, also noting she wasn't even sure if all of the episodes would air. Melissa McCarthy later followed up, confirming she had been told the show was over, although in her case losing the series shouldn't be as big of a deal, as she is in demand for movie roles. While CBS hasn't said Mike & Molly will be ending after this season, it's a pretty done deal.
A very similar thing happened with the CW's Hart of Dixie last season, and that show was also confirmed to be cancelled down the line. On the bright side, when cancellations get announced like this, at least show's have enough time to shoot a finale they can be proud of.
You can catch Mike & Molly when it hits the schedule on January 6. For other premiere dates, check out our Winter TV schedule.
It's unfortunate that Mike & Molly was cancelled. However, if you are looking to add the series to your dvd or blu-ray collection, you can check that out here.
