Paramount+ dumps a slew of shows as it merges with Showtime

Not only is Paramount+ paring down its menu of subscription plans, it’s also slimming down its library of streaming titles, with some surprisingly high-profile shows and moves on the chopping block.

Late last week (as reported by Deadline), Paramount+ announced that it was cancelling and summarily dumping a quartet of its original shows, including Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies, Star Trek: Prodigy, The Game, and Queen of the Universe.

Then yesterday, a bunch of additional Paramount+ titles were yanked off the service, including Inside Amy Schumer, From Cradle to Stage, Fantasy Football, and Show Day. More than a dozen Nickelodeon shows are also gone, such as All In With Cam Newton, The Halo Effect, Monsters vs. Aliens, and Peter Rabbit.

A Showtime spokesperson confirmed that most of the missing titles were removed as “part of our content impairment” following the Showtime merger, but that the Nickelodeon shows had been pulled as “part of our normal monthly changing of content.”

The latest culling came a day before Paramount+ wrapped up its merger with Showtime, whittling down its four subscription plans (including a pair of Showtime bundles) to just two and instituting a modest price hike.

Content purges are fast becoming a favorite strategy for the big streamers, which are scrambling to achieve profitability amid a slowdown in subscriber growth. By wiping titles off their libraries, streaming services can cut down on royalty and residual costs while shaving millions off their books.

Disney+ and Hulu removed such highly touted shows as Willow, Big Shot, Dollface, and The Hot Zone from their collections last month, while HBO Max (now just Max) nixed dozens of titles last August.

Still, some of Paramount+’s culling decisions were surprising. As Deadline points out, the streamer had Emmy hopes for Inside Amy Schumer, the popular Schumer-led comedy series that had returned following a six-year hiatus.

Then there’s Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies, a high-profile Grease prequel, and From Cradle to Stage, a Dave Grohl-directed docuseries that had won some admiring reviews, while the animated Star Trek: Prodigy was, after all, a Star Trek show.

The latest round of Paramount+ library cuts isn’t the first for the streaming service, which gave the heave-ho in February to Real World: Homecoming, The Twilight Zone (from Get Out director Jordan Peele), Interrogation with Peter Sarsgaard, Coyote starring Michael Chiklis, and Guilty Party with Kate Beckinsale.

Here are the shows that Paramount+ has cut from its library in the past week:

• Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies
• Star Trek: Prodigy
• Queen of the Universe
• The Game
• Inside Amy Schumer
• From Cradle to Stage
• Tell Me a Story
• Ghislaine: Partner in Crime
• Fantasy Football
• Snow Day
• All In With Cam Newton
• Allegra’s Window
• Becca’s Bunch
• Bella and the Bulldogs
• Crashletes
• Digby Dragon
• The Fresh Beat Band
• The Halo Effect
• Legendary Dudas
• Monsters vs. Aliens
• Mutt & Stuff
• Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn
• Peter Rabbit
• Pig Goat Banana Cricket
• Ride and The Troop

Updated on June 28, 2023 with comments from a Showtime rep.