Spartacus: House of Ashur has been canceled after one season at Starz, ending Steven S. DeKnight’s return to the Spartacus franchise after just one run.
The series is not completely dead yet, as Lionsgate Television is reportedly shopping the show to other platforms, but Starz will not move forward with Season 2.
Deadline reports the sequel failed to match the buzz and viewership of the original Spartacus series. The site also points to Starz’s current audience strategy as part of the issue.
“Additionally, the makeup of the followup’s audience did not quite align with Starz’s focus on women and underrepresented audiences, sources said,” Deadline reported.
Starz Cancels Spartacus: House Of Ashur
Spartacus: House of Ashur brought back Nick Tarabay as Ashur in an alternate timeline where the character survived and was given control of Batiatus’ ludus.
The show marked DeKnight’s return to the franchise after the original Spartacus became one of Starz’s signature shows. The original run launched in 2010 with Spartacus: Blood and Sand and became known for its brutal action, sex, violence, and over-the-top gladiator drama.
House of Ashur tried to continue that brand with a new twist, but according to Deadline, the follow-up “could not match the buzz and viewership levels” of the original series.
Audience Didn’t Fit Starz’s Current Focus
The most interesting part of the cancellation report is Deadline’s note about the audience.
The outlet says the audience makeup for Spartacus: House of Ashur “did not quite align” with Starz’s focus on women and underrepresented audiences.
In other words, Spartacus appears to have run into a branding problem at Starz.
The original Spartacus was a male-skewing, blood-soaked gladiator drama built on violence, revenge, sex, betrayal, and arena spectacle.
House of Ashur may have carried the Spartacus name, but the follow-up looked like a very different play from the original series.
Deadline’s report suggests that the shift did not work, with the show failing to draw the buzz, viewership, or audience of the successful first series.
What Spartacus: House Of Ashur Was About
Spartacus: House of Ashur followed an alternate version of events where Ashur did not die on Mount Vesuvius.
Instead, he was rewarded for helping the Romans defeat Spartacus and was given control of the former House of Batiatus. From there, the series followed Ashur as he tried to rebuild power and status in the Roman world.
A major part of that new direction was Achillia, played by Tenika Davis. The character, whose real name is Neferet, is an enslaved Nubian warrior whom Ashur turns into the centerpiece of his ludus.
Starz promoted her as the franchise’s first female gladiator, making her one of the show’s biggest departures from the original Spartacus formula.
The show also introduced new gladiators, political players, and arena conflicts while trying to expand the Spartacus universe beyond the original rebellion story.
