'Skins' Won't Return For Season Two

MTV calls the show 'a global television phenomenon that, unfortunately, didn't connect with a U.S. audience as much as we had hoped.'
By Kara Warner

James Newman as Tony in "Skins"
Photo: Jason Nocito

MTV was sad to announce the cancellation of the highly anticipated and controversial teen soap "Skins" on Thursday (June 9). The decision came after the American version of the hugely popular U.K. show just didn't bring in enough viewers to green-light a second season.

" 'Skins' is a global television phenomenon that, unfortunately, didn't connect with a U.S. audience as much as we had hoped," the network said in a statement to MTV News. "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."

Despite the huge buzz "Skins" had going into its premiere on January 17, the show wasn't able to build on its viewership. It also faced the obstacle of being rated TV-MA, which meant that, A) the show couldn't be broadcast before 10 p.m., and B) was intended for viewers over the age of 17, even though it was set in a high school.

Elsley created the U.K. series with his son Jamie Brittain in 2007. He called the show "old-fashioned" in the way that it focused solely on the universal experience of being a teenager and how they deal with family, friends and burgeoning adulthood. Elsley firmly defended the show's content as not so much controversial, but "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."

The end of "Skins" does not mean the end of MTV's efforts to broadcast more original scripted programming. There are six new series set to premiere on the network this fall: "Awkward," "Beavis and Butt-head," "Good Vibes," "I Just Want My Pants Back," "Death Valley" and "Inbetweeners."

Are you sad to say goodbye to "Skins"? Tell us in the comments.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1665509/skins-season-two-canceled.jhtml

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