Why Lois & Clark: The New Adventures Of Superman Was Canceled After A Cliffhanger

In theory, Superman is unstoppable. In practice, though, the Man of Steel carries a long resume of canceled or otherwise failed projects that extends well beyond Henry Cavill's strenuous tenure wearing the cape. In 1993, ABC released "Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman," a superhero drama starring Dean Cain as the last son of Krypton and Teri Hatcher as everyone's favorite reporter Lois Lane. The series, which focuses on their relationship — much like HBO Max's recent animated "My Adventures with Superman," received four seasons before getting the axe ... on a cliffhanger, no less. So what happened?

Unlike less fortunate DC productions, like the forever unreleased "Batgirl," ABC's "Lois & Clark" suffered a more traditional death. The series' popularity tanked drastically in its 4th season, so much so that Season 4's final episode pulled less than half the audience of Season 4's first. Warning signs were found even earlier in Season 3, where ratings already indicated a decline in public interest. Despite the writing on the proverbial wall, showrunners remained confident that the studio would greenlight a Season 5. Well, that was nearly 30 years ago and it doesn't look like more "Lois & Clark" is ever coming, despite Cain's hints in 2019 that he could reboot the franchise.

That's why the series ended on a cliffhanger. Wishful thinking overpowered pragmatism. That lack of forethought denied any remaining fans the chance to enjoy a satisfying conclusion to "Lois & Clark."

Okay, so the team behind "Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman" thought that they would get a Season 5, right? We've established that. What we haven't established is how far they got into the process of shaping Season 5 ... and the answer is "not very." Technically speaking, they did create a blueprint. But calling it a "blueprint" is kind of like calling Kon-El "Superman." It's not incorrect, just a little premature.

During a 2018 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Executive Producer Eugenie Ross-Leming shared the broad-stroke vision of what Season 5 would entail. "Looking to create obstacles for them [in the Season 4 finale], we ended up saying that carrying a baby to term would kill Lois," explained Ross-Leming. "But as fate — or intergalactic justice — would have it, a baby of Krypton lineage is left at their doorstep. If the show had gone on, we would have seen them figuring out how to raise this child, who would have aged rapidly. He would have become a teenager in months."

Given how similar premises exist for projects such as the CW's "Superman & Lois," where the couple constantly faces the trials of parenthood, Ross-Leming's plan doesn't seem so bad, but that quote seems to be the extent of her plan because, when asked if the child would also possess superpowers like Clark Kent, she admitted, "We actually hadn't figured it out that far."

Sure, a lot of businesses are banking on Millennial Nostalgia for financial stability (looking at you, NSYNC reunion tour), so there is a nonzero chance that DC Studios picks "Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman" back up for a Season 5 continuance but that nonzero number is infinitesimal at best and a single look at the DCU in 2023 is all it takes to confirm that. Consider how the current projects are struggling to stay afloat and how Zack Snyder's Justice League actors are officially being recast. It's not an ideal time to bet on familiar talent making a comeback. 

Now consider Dean Cain. In 2020, Cain expressed frustration against the idea of cancel culture by saying, "I promise you, as Superman, I wouldn't today be allowed to say [Superman's catchphrase], 'Truth, justice, and the American Way' ... They hate capitalism, they hate law and order, and they hate America. 

Additionally, in 2021, the "Lois & Clark" star told Fox News that he didn't think DC should rebrand Superman as a bisexual superhero. "They said it's a bold new direction. I say they're bandwagoning," stated Cain. "I don't think it's bold or brave or some crazy new direction. If they had done this 20 years ago, perhaps that would be bold or brave."

Even if there's a demand for more "Lois & Clark," even if both Teri Hatcher and Cain are on board to continue the narrative, is DC Studios in a viable enough situation to hire more actors with publicly volatile personal lives? Maybe, just this once, we should let sleeping superdogs lie.