Amazon’s sudden cancellation of Good Girls Revolt after a month and change blindsided many, but none more than series creator Dana Calvo. “We were all so surprised because we were a hit,†she explained to The Hollywood Reporter, citing the show’s high Rotten Tomatoes score and 55 percent success rate in driving viewers to the commerce sections of Amazon. Third-party streaming monitor Symphony Advanced Media also asserts GGR was doing well in its demo. “It’s really the only Amazon program that we’ve seen to date that has a really strong female 18-to-49 following,†Symphony senior vice president John Sollecito told THR. However, streaming services’ viewership numbers are notoriously opaque, and Amazon contests the claim that Good Girls Revolt had a substantial viewership. “We had high hopes for Good Girls Revolt, and have tremendous respect for the creators, cast and Sony, but I can tell you that the Symphony numbers being reported are wrong and that the show wasn’t performing at the levels we had hoped for — either in total viewership or completion rates,†Amazon’s head of comedy and drama Joe Lewis told THR.
While fans petition to resurrect the fledgling show at another network, Calvo claims GGR failed to win the most important fan of all: Amazon’s Roy Price. “What we hadn’t factored in is that [Amazon Studios head] Roy Price just doesn’t care for the show,†she said. “He’s representative of the Amazon culture in that he’s just impenetrable.†Rice allegedly did not provide notes on the series’ episodes, nor attend the show’s premiere. “All I know is that in the [season two] pitch, he asked us to refer to the characters by the actors’ names because he didn’t know the characters’ names,†Calvo said. The show currently only has until December 31 to find a home for its season two; cast options expire in the new year.