Through two seasons, The Orville has been the little Star Trek homage that could. Like its (unofficial) Trek forefathers, The Orville has built up a small-but-formidable fanbase. Fox rewarded that fanbase by ordering a third season, but now it’s been announced that the series will move to Hulu.
The news was revealed in a statement by series creator Seth MacFarlane at SDCC:
“My friends at the network understood what I was trying to do with this series, and they’ve done a spectacular job of marketing, launching and programming it for these past two seasons. But as the show has evolved and become more ambitious production-wise, I determined that I would not be able to deliver episodes until 2020, which would be challenging for the network. So we began to discuss how best to support the third season in a way that worked for the show. It’s exactly this kind of willingness to accommodate a show’s creative needs that’s made me want to stick around for so long. I am hugely indebted to Charlie Collier and Fox Entertainment for their generosity and look forward to developing future projects there. And to my new friends at Hulu, I look forward to our new partnership exploring the galaxy together.”
According to the venerable TV Series Finale, The Orville season 2 averaged around 3.16 million viewers per episode, with its rating in the coveted 18-49 demographic being a rough .75. Those numbers are down 40% and 27% respectively from the show’s first season. As is often the case in these things, however, those numbers don’t tell the whole story. It’s rare for any network show to gain viewers in its second season nowadays. Series often hit a peak early on and start gradually losing viewers.
The Orville season 2 plot
MacFarlane responded to news of season 3’s confirmation by pretending to be devastated, a tongue-in-cheek reference to actress Constance Wu’s genuine dismay at Fresh Off The Boat being renewed, which apparently got in the way of her taking on an exciting passion project instead:
Like many finales in the modern TV landscape, The Orville season 2 finale could have served as both a fitting season or series end. There was a conclusive finish to the show’s brief time travel arc and now that the show has been granted a third season, it will likely get right back to the story of The Orville and its diverse crew.
The Orville season 3 release date
The Orville season 3 won’t be here for quite a while due to MacFarlane’s packed schedule. It’s now being estimated that Hulu will aim for a late-2020 premiere for season 3.
The Orville season 3 cast
The Orville was created by Family Guy’s MacFarlane, who also stars in the show alongside Adrianna Palicki, Penny Johnson Jerald, Scott Grimes, and many others, who we assume will all return for season 3. The Orville season 2 saw the departure of Halston Sage from the cast.
We’ll keep you updated with all the relevant Orville news as it pops up.
