Yancy Butler on WITCHBLADE
© 2001 Warner Bros.

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TNT cancels WITCHBLADE

Despite getting respectable ratings for a cable show, TNT has announced the popular genre fantasy actioner, WITCHBLADE, has been canceled.

The move comes as a shock given the hour-long drama staring Yancy Butler as a demon fighting cop has snagged some of the best ratings the network has seen in original programming.

In an odd bit of rationalization (is there another word?), TNT's Executive Vice President and General Manager Steve Koonin told VARIETY, "It's a very tough decision. Our criteria for this show was really four-fold [a good match with cable and advertisers, a show unlike any on TV, a strong ratings performer which allows the network to build on its success, and a good summer series hit]. WITCHBLADE did all of that great for two years. We just felt to stretch it to a third year could hurt some of those areas."

But given the stable ratings, what's the story? For now, we're left to wonder.