EXCLUSIVE: The sun is setting on Sky’s Spanish crime drama A Town Called Malice after just one season.
Sky has this week informed producers Vertigo Films and Rogue State of its decision to cancel the show, which has come as a surprise to some given preparations were underway for Season 2.
Penned by Bulletproof co-creator and The Football Factory director Nick Love, A Town Called Malice was set in the Costa del Sol crime wave in the 1980s.
Jason Flemyng (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels) starred as Albert Lord, the head of a family of petty thieves from South London who decamp to Spain to profit from an unexpected windfall.
Sky backed A Town Called Malice with its full marketing heft and the series was a key part of its 2023 originals slate, but the show has not performed as hoped.
The drama’s ratings were lower than expected and Sky insiders are blaming the competitive environment for scripted content.
Deadline understands that there were high hopes that A Town Called Malice would return before Season 1 had even dropped, with plans to film Season 2 penciled in for this spring.
Sky said: “A Town Called Malice is a riotous, neon-soaked love letter to the 80s and we are enormously proud of the series. Though we won’t be returning to the Costa del Crime, we would like to thank Nick Love, the cast, and the team at Vertigo Films for their hard work and creative vision.”
A Town Called Malice‘s fans included Jeremy Clarkson, who tweeted that it was “f*****g brilliant” and the best TV show he had seen in years. Industry detractors, however, described it as “naff.”