Starz to End ‘Black Sails’ After Four Seasons

By R. Thomas Umstead
published

Starz will ground its drama series Black Sails after its fourth season runs in 2017, the network said Wednesday.

The high seas, pirate-themed drama series will conclude with a 10-episode fourth season in 2017. The series, which stars Toby Stephens, averaged 3.6 million multi-platform viewers per episode, according to Starz.

Black Sails was created by Jon Steinberg and Robert Levine, and executively produced by Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, Andrew Form, Chris Symes, Brad Caleb Kane and Dan Shotz.

“Jon Steinberg and Robert Levine, along with their crew and the phenomenal cast, have delivered a spectacular take on the most legendary pirate story in literature, and this final season will bring us to the shores of Treasure Island as was always intended,” said Starz Managing Director Carmi Zlotnik in a statement. “Black Sails has been a tremendous success; from the loyal fan following and strong viewership numbers to awards recognition and the skill of our world-class production in Cape Town, we could not be more proud of this very special series.”

R. Thomas Umstead
R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.