Queen Latifah’s role as mysterious guardian Robyn McCall on the CBS drama “The Equalizer” will end after five seasons.
CBS revealed Friday that the Latifah-led series, a staple of the network’s Sunday night lineup, will not be renewed for Season 6. The May 4 Season 5 finale (10 EDT/PDT), titled “Decisions,” will now be the series finale for the procedural.
In the reimagining of the 1980s CBS series, Latifah stars as former CIA operative McCall, who uses her particular set of skills to help people in need. The reboot has passionate fans who pushed “The Equalizer” to the top of USA TODAY’s exclusive “Save Our Shows” readers’ poll.
Save Our Shows 2025: See how your TV favorites fared in USA TODAY’s exclusive poll
In the poll results announced Friday, 47% of “SOS” voters said they wanted the show to return for a sixth season, the highest percentage of any show.
Only 23% of poll respondents wanted CBS’s “Poppa’s House,” a multigenerational family sitcom starring Damon Wayans and Damon Wayans Jr., to return. The comedy was canceled after one season in April.
CBS has made significant changes to the programming slate, canceling several shows, including “S.W.A.T.” in March after Season 8. The network plans new series such as the “Blue Bloods” spinoff “Boston Blue,” the “FBI” spinoff “FBI: CIA,” and the comedy “DMV” for next season. CBS will reveal its fall schedule on May 7.
Queen Latifah thanks ‘ride-or-die’ fans for five seasons
The “U.N.I.T.Y.” singer responded to the news with an Instagram photo featuring McCall in action. With the Cleo Sol song “Know That You Are Loved” playing, Latifah thanked the “so loyal, so loud, and so ride-or-die” fans.
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“Stepping into a kick-ass role like Robyn was everything I hoped it would be,” Latifah wrote to her 8.2 million Instagram followers. “‘The Equalizer’ blew past every dream we had for it, and having the opportunity to do this for five seasons honestly feels surreal.”
The Emmy-winning actress told fans not to worry about her. “I’ll be back kicking ass in something new real soon,” Latifah wrote. “Can’t wait to share it with you.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: CBS cancels ‘The Equalizer’ after 5 seasons: Queen Latifah responds
