The sequel to the beloved sapphic series The L Word has been canceled following its third season. The news about The L Word: Generation Q, which provided fans with more inclusive storytelling, came only a couple of months after the most recent season ended.
A reboot of the series, currently working under the title of The L Word New York, is in development at Showtime though with the involvement of the original's creator Ilene Chaiken, who also executive produced the sequel.
Deadline was first to report about the cancellation. The outlet notes that no Showtime series has been renewed following news that the premium cable network would become part of the streaming service Paramount+ and be renamed Paramount+ with Showtime.
The show seemed to fit into the channel’s new emphasis on what was billed as “unconventional cultural takes.”
The original was a trailblazing series. As The Advocatewrote back in 2017 when the sequel was announced, "There have been plenty of queer female characters on television since The L Word ended its six-season run in 2009, but nothing has quite matched the microcosm that was the show's specific group of Los Angeles-based (mostly) lesbians who laughed, gossiped, loved, backstabbed, and had loads of sex."
A reboot of the series is in development at Showtime though with the involvement of the original’s creator Ilene Chaiken, according to Deadline.
From executive producers Ilene Chaiken, Jennifer Beals, Kate Moennig, and Leisha Hailey, and showrunner Marja-Lewis Ryan, the reboot followed original characters Bette (Beals), Alice (Hailey), and Shane (Moennig) while also telling the stories of a new crew of LGBTQ+ characters who span a breadth of diversity within in the community. Those stories included that of Dani Nùñez (Arienne Mandi), Micah Lee (Leo Sheng), Finley (Jacqueline Toboni), Sophie Suarez (Rosanny Zayas), Gigi Ghorbani (Sepideh Moafi), Angie Porter-Kennard (Jordan Hull) and Tess (Jamie Clayton) and their adventures of love, sex, and friendship in Los Angeles.