Peacock has reversed course and canceled the second season of its Pitch Perfect TV spinoff Bumper in Berlin, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.
The renewal was first announced back in January, after the show’s first six-episode season debuted Nov. 23, 2022. At the time of the renewal, NBCU said Bumper in Berlin was the streamer’s top comedy series to date, but has not released any viewing data.
The cancellation comes amid Hollywood’s dual WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, and marks yet another series, alongside the canceled second seasons of Prime Video’s The Peripheral and A League of Their Own, to have the plug pulled during the work stoppage. At the time, A League of Their Own co-creator and star Abbi Jacobson criticized Prime Video’s decision, writing that “to blame this cancellation on the strike is bullshit and cowardly.”
When the WGA strike began on May 2, the comedy had not started preproduction on season two, sources tell THR, falling behind its planned timeline. Peacock and Prime video’s renewal reversals follow similar decisions made by networks and platforms during the pandemic.
The WGA and the AMPTP have returned to the negotiating table over the last week, spurring hope that a fair deal can be made and opening the door to resolve the labor dispute. Now in its fifth month, the work stoppage is approaching the guild’s previous record for its longest strike in history, which took place in 1988 and lasted 154 days.
Bumper in Berlin starred Pitch Perfect star Adam Devine in a reprisal of his film role as Bumper Allen, the main antagonist of the first film, the leader of Barden’s all-male a cappella group. Bumper became a supporting character in the film’s 2015 sequel. The Peacock series followed Bumper as he attempted to revive his music career in Germany after it becomes a hit in the Western European nation.
The Universal TV series also starred Flula Borg, Sarah Hyland, Lera Abova and Jameela Jamil. The Good Place‘s Megan Amram was showrunner and served as executive producer alongside Pitch Perfect 2 director Elizabeth Banks, Max Handelman, Devine and more.
