Was There a Conspiracy Behind Cancellation of Jada Pinkett Smith and Marc Anthony's Hawthorne?

Oh, stop being so suspicious about rumor-plagued costars—and here's why

By Joal Ryan Sep 03, 2011 5:30 PMTags
Hawthorne, Jada Pinkett-Smith, Marc AnthonyDarren Michaels/TNT

One minute, Hawthorrne is ground zero for rumors about Jada Pinkett Smith and Marc Anthony. The next, it's canceled.

Did the show's powerful costars make it go away?

Let's rewind for a bit:

Yes, Smith has been tamping down talk that her marriage to Will Smith is on the rocks.

And, yes, Anthony, who, on the heels of his split from Jennifer Lopez, has been pressed on rumors that he and Smith were more than friends.

And… Well, what else?

Sure, as Anthony told ABC News, the whispers have been tough on his family, but he didn't say he was retreating from the spotlight because of them.

The story behind Hawthorne's cancellation is probably a lot more boring than sexy conspiracy theories or suggestions that rumors nixed the show.

The truth probably is TNT just wasn't that into Hawthorne.

The show delivered neither big ratings or big buzz. Sure, TNT liked it enough to keep it on three seasons—a year ago, it was even raving about the medical drama's minor Nielsen prowess. But this summer was different. A network press release issued Aug. 22 for general gloating purposes mentioned the series only in passing. No adjectives or superlatives were used. Always a bad sign.

Now, maybe if Hawthorne had gotten this much attention a few months ago…

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