More details are emerging about the shocking cancellation of a longstanding entertainment program. Fans were stunned to learn last week that NBCUniversal were getting rid of Access Hollywood from their lineup. The daytime show had been a mainstay on the network since its beginning in September 1996. Despite all its success over the years, it felt as though its popularity was dwindling. According to an insider, staff members had less say over what would go to air. That may be to blame for the show’s decline.
Access Hollywood “became promotional fluff”
Publicists’ guidelines are responsible for Access Hollywood’s demise. On Rob Shuter’s Substack Naughty But Nice, an insider called the show’s staff “some of the best in the business.” Unfortunately, that source says the conditions publicists put them in “made it almost impossible to build a real audience.” With publicists seemingly calling all the shots, the insider believes the program “became promotional fluff.”
With social media nowadays, fans aren’t as keen to wait for the show to air to get their celebrity gossip. TikTok and Instagram already had that news, which may have hurt Access Hollywood’s ratings.
The cancellations at NBC were part of a huge overhaul the network announced last week. The Steve Wilkos Show and Karamo were also axed. NBC’s future plans include adding more community-focused programs. There was a belief that some of the cancelled shows weren’t sustainable in the long term.
While the insider says publicists have tried to control shows like this for years, this cancellation has an ironic twist. Celebrities no longer have that platform to promote themselves. That could prove to be a massive loss. New episodes of the cancelled shows will still air, but no new episodes will be filmed after they air.
TELL US – DO YOU THINK PUBLICISTS ARE TO BLAME FOR ACCESS HOLLYWOOD’S CANCELLATION?
