After generating significant criticism from the outset, the animated series about the British Royal Family from the eyes of the young royal, Prince George, will not return for Season 2.
The Prince, HBO Max’s satirical take on the imagined inner workings of the royal family through the eyes of an animated Prince George, is done after one troubled season.
According to Deadline, HBO and HBO Max chief content officer Casey Bloys confirmed, “The Prince is not moving forward.”
The show, created by Gary Janetti (Family Guy), follows a sassy Prince George (voiced by Janetti) and the shenanigans of his kooky royal family. It was adapted, kind of, from satirical “Prince George” content Janetti posted on his popular Instagram account.
It boasted A-List talent including Sophie Turner (Game of Thrones) as five-year-old Princess Charlotte; Alan Cumming (GoldenEye, X2) as George's butler Owen; Orlando Bloom (Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Carribbean) as Prince Harry; Condola Rashad (Billions) as Meghan Markle; fellow Thrones star Iwan Rheon as Prince William; Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey, Legion) as Prince Philip; and Lucy Punch (Into the Woods, A Series of Unfortunate Events) as Kate Middleton.
The show met with controversy from the outset, with the scheduled release put on hold due to the passing of Prince Philip. The prince consort was not portrayed in the most flattering way… nor was anyone on the show for the most part. Ultimately, nothing was changed during the show’s self-imposed launch-pause other than the addition of a rather weak disclaimer fronting each episode. But, the show courted the most controversy not just by its portrayal of the 8-year-old Prince George as a bitter, envious, entitled monster of a child, but that it felt a child was fair game for such mean-spirited satire to begin with.
Debbie Diamond Sarto is news editor at Animation World Network.
