PITTSBURGH — Amazon Prime Video has finally made their plans for the Rockford Peaches' immediate future crystal clear.
Last month, reports began surfacing that the streaming service had ordered a shortened second and final season of "A League of Their Own," the television adaptation of the 1992 Penny Marshall film of the same name that was shot throughout western Pennsylvania during summer and fall 2021. Amazon remained tight-lipped, though, leaving fans to wonder what was actually going on with the show's fate.
On Wednesday, Amazon confirmed that "A League of Their Own" has been renewed for a four-episode second installment that's being billed as a "limited series." The press release Amazon sent out did not specify whether this would be the final season, though The Hollywood Reporter's Lesley Goldberg wrote Wednesday that the series "will conclude with a four-episode run that Amazon is billing as a limited series."
Like the film on which it's based, "A League of Their Own" follows the Rockford Peaches and their efforts to take the fledgling All-American Girls Professional Baseball League by storm. It was co-created by "Broad City" alumnus Abbi Jacobson, who also stars as closeted catcher Carson Shaw, and Will Graham, the co-showrunner of fellow Amazon show "Daisy Jones & The Six" that happens to revolve around a band from Pittsburgh.
"Making this show and seeing the impact it has had in the world has been an incredible joy," Graham and Jacobson said in a joint statement. "While obviously we were hoping for 11 seasons, we're grateful to be able to continue to tell the story of these characters and this world."
The first season of "A League of Their own" was shot all around the Pittsburgh area and even involved Amazon and Sony Pictures Television building the Peaches' home stadium from scratch on the campus of CCAC Boyce Park in Monroeville. Last month, it picked up an outstanding new TV series prize at the 2023 Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) Media Awards.
"We're deeply proud of the work that Abbi, Will, the cast, and crew have done reimagining 'A League of Their Own,' which has produced an incredibly loyal fan base as well as achieved numerous, well-deserved recognitions and accolades," Vernon Sanders, head of television at Amazon and MGM Studios, said in that press release.
"After hearing what Abbi, Will and the writing team have planned for the new story within this wonderful series, we are excited for our fans to see what comes next."
Sanders isn't kidding about the extremely passionate fan base "A League of Their Own" has garnered. When the initial reports about a four-episode second season surfaced, disappointed fans started a #MoreThanFour campaign on social media with the goal of convincing Amazon to give their beloved show another eight-episode outing.
Some even went as far as chartering a plane and flying it over Amazon's studio in Culver City, California, with a banner that read, "Renew A League of Their Own #MoreThanFour."
As fans react to the news of this renewal, it remains unclear whether "A League of Their Own" will return to the Steel City for filming. Pittsburgh Film Office director Dawn Keezer told the Post-Gazette on Wednesday that she isn't sure what Amazon's plans are in that regard.
As she put it: "We are hopeful to be welcoming them back soon!"
