Snowpiercer brought some dystopian scripted drama to TNT for three seasons starting back in 2020 before the news that the fourth would be the last. Fans had every reason to expect that the show would be back for the fourth and final season sometime early in the new year, but the latest development is that TNT won't air the fourth season at all, and the network has a message about the decision.
TNT is part of the Warner Bros. Discovery network following the merger in 2022, which resulted in other completed projects being pulled before even airing, famously including the Batgirl film that would have debuted with Leslie Grace as Barbara Gordon. According to Deadline, the decision to just not air Snowpiercer Season 4 is tied to the tax write-offs at the company. Via the outlet, a TNT spokesperson addressed the "difficult decision" while confirming the sad news:
We can confirm that TNT will not air season four of Snowpiercer. This was a difficult decision, but our admiration for the talented writers, actors and crew who brought Snowpiercer’s extraordinary post-apocalyptic world to life remains strong. We have been working collaboratively with the producers since last year to help the series find a new home where fans can continue to enjoy the compelling story and exceptional visual experience. We look forward to working with them on future projects.
There are some nice sentiments within that statement, including compliments for the team who brought Snowpiercer to the small screen and a reveal that TNT has been working with producers in the hope of finding a home for the fourth and final season. That said, acknowledging that a decision was difficult won't make it any easier for most fans to swallow.
Plus, the statement only says that TNT has been working with producers "since last year" on finding a new home; with the news breaking on January 13, "last year" was just two weeks ago, so it's hard to say how long the efforts have been happening. Snowpiercer's fourth season serving as the final season was announced back in June, with no sign that it might not air at all.
In fact, there were exciting developments being announced by TNT about the show, with production started in Vancouver, Canada in late March. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. alum Clark Gregg was coming to the show, as well as The Americans' Michael Aronov. Snowpiercer even brought in Lost's Paul Zbyszewski as a new showrunner/executive producer.
This is only the latest show under the Warner Bros. Discovery banner to be cut, cancelled, or pulled from streaming over the past year. It may have been a bad sign for Snowpiercer when it was among the shows removed from the HBO Max subscription streaming service in 2022. There was no indication at the time that the fourth season would never see the light of day on its home network, and the three seasons are not available as part of a subscription to any other major streaming service at the time of writing.
Will that change? Well, production studio Tomorrow Studios is reportedly shopping Season 4 around to release on a different platform, so it's not out of the question. Plus, it may not be an uphill battle quite as much as what Warrior Nun fans have been passionately trying to accomplish after that series' cancellation. Other shows that had their finished final seasons cut from a Warner Bros. Discovery network have found new homes, including former TBS' Chad and The Big D.
The former headed to Roku, with the latter finding a new home at USA. This is the end of Snowpiercer on TNT, but possibly not the end of Snowpiercer altogether with another season on deck and interest in landing somewhere else. Cutting plans to air the show also means the end of an era of original scripted television on TNT; Snowpiercer was the last original scripted project standing after Animal Kingdom finished its sixth and final season in 2022.
While Snowpiercer fans have gotten some pretty discouraging news, there are at least plenty of viewing options elsewhere on television now and in the coming weeks. Check out what's on the way with our 2023 TV premiere schedule!
