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“American Born Chinese” has been canceled after one season on Disney+, Variety has learned.
According to a person with knowledge of the decision, Disney had placed great emphasis on the series' creativity, but viewership did not justify greenlighting a second season. The producers plan to shop the series to other outlets as well.
“American Born Chinese” debuted on Disney+ in May. The Disney Branded Television series is based on the graphic novel of the same name by Gene Luen Yang. The official logline states that the series “depicts the worries and hardships of an ordinary American teenager whose life is changed forever when he befriends the son of a mythological god.”
The cast of the series included Ben Wang, Michelle Yeoh, Yeo Yann Yann, Chin Han, Jimmy Liu, Ke Huy Quan, Sydney Taylor and Daniel Wu. The show received positive reviews from critics, with the first season receiving an approval rating of 94% based on 51 reviews.
Kelvin Yu developed the series for television and served as executive producer and showrunner. Destin Daniel Cretton served as the series' director and executive producer. Melvin Mar and Jake Kasdan also executive produced alongside Yang, Erin O'Malley and Asher Goldstein. “American Born Chinese” was produced by 20th Television.
The news of the series' cancellation comes just a day after the series The Brothers Sun, which also stars Michelle Yeoh, debuted on Netflix. Quan also recently appeared in Season 2 of the Marvel series “Loki” on Disney+. Cretton, meanwhile, is working as co-creator, director and executive producer on the upcoming Marvel Disney+ series “Wonder Man.”