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Will the Brown family ever return to our TV screens? It seems increasingly unlikely.
Discovery has not aired new episodes of Alaskan Bush People since 2022, and now there are signs that the show has been quietly canceled after 14 seasons.
That news isn’t terribly surprising, coming, as it does, years after the death of star Billy Brown and the filing of an increasingly messy lawsuit.
But fans are still upset by the latest developments in this sad story.
Has Discovery canceled ‘Alaskan Bush People’?
Let’s get the big question out of the way right off the bat:
No, Discovery has not officially announced the cancelation of Alaskan Bush People. But it seems like such an announcement is coming soon.
As TV Insider notes, the show is no longer listed on the Discovery Channel’s media page as one of the network’s properties.
Many fans assumed that the show would come to an end following Billy’s death. But according to a new report from The Sun, it wasn’t Billy’s passing, but his legal entanglements that brought about the end of ABP.
Two months after Billy’s passing, a former business partner named Robert Maughon filed a breach of contract lawsuit against the late star’s estate and business, Alaskan Wilderness Family Productions.
He alleged that Billy had agreed to pay him 10 percent “of the gross income of Alaska Wilderness Family Productions from the creative works of Billy Bryan Brown, specifically including books, movies, television and documentaries.”
The suit threatened to wrangle Discovery into this messy legal battle, which might be one reason that the network decided to cut ties with the Browns.
“These breaches occurred despite the significant profits generated by [Alaskan Wilderness Family Productions], particularly through the television series Alaskan Bush People which was featured on the Discovery Channel network,” reads one portion of the filing.
The suit contains clues that ‘Alaskan Bush People’ has come to an end
As The Sun reports, the wording in the lawsuit seems to indicate that ABP has concluded its run on Discovery.
“Testimony acknowledging that the show Alaskan Bush People ultimately had 14 seasons, with the last season being filmed in 2022,” one portion reads.
The documents repeatedly refer to the series in the past tense, with one portion reading:
“These breaches occurred despite the significant profits generated by [Alaskan Wilderness Family Productions], particularly through the television series ‘Alaskan Bush People’ which was featured on the Discovery Channel network.”
It’s not uncommon for a long-running show to be revived by a new network. But that seems unlikely in the case of a series whose most beloved cast member passed away several years ago.
Yes, fans said goodbye to Billy quite some time ago. And now, it looks like it’s time to say goodbye to Alaskan Bush People.
‘Alaskan Bush People’ Canceled After 14 Seasons Amid Lawsuit: Report was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.
