Two very different shows have been given some great news by Hulu: the streamer has confirmed that it's commissioned new seasons of both Futurama and reportedly the crime thriller classic Prison Break, too.
Although the shows have virtually nothing in common – except for the likely chance of joining our best Hulu shows list – the one thing they do share is that they both have very passionate fanbases, so the news will no doubt be causing some rejoicing in their respective fandoms.
Futurama, the critically-acclaimed sci-fi comedy animation from The Simpsons' Matt Groening, has had a bumpy ride over the years. It began in 1999 before being canceled by Fox; it then appeared on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim from 2003 through 2007; and was revived in 2007, airing new episodes on Comedy Central until 2013. It was then revived again by Hulu in 2022, with new episodes on the best streaming service from July 2023.
And now Hulu's making more, bringing the total number of episodes up to 170. The streamer has greenlit two more seasons, which will stream on Hulu in the US and on Disney Plus in the UK.
A clean break for Prison Break
Prison Break is supposedly coming back too, according to news confirmed by Variety. The prison drama – a sit-con, anyone? No? Okay – that ran for five award-winning seasons on Fox and spawned a less successful spin-off movie for mobile phones is making a clean break from its past.
While the new season will be set in the same world, it isn't expected to feature any of the lead characters from previous seasons. It's very unlikely we'll see original star Wentworth Miller return: since he came out as gay, he's decided not to play straight characters any more because "their stories have been told (and told)".
According to Deadline, the new season is "a new chapter", and it's being written and executive produced by Elgin James. James is best known for The Outlaws, Mayans M.C. and Lowriders, so the show is clearly in capable hands.
Hopefully he'll resist the temptation to go over the top. Reviews for the final season were very mixed, with many critics feeling that the show had become a kind of collection of Homeland B-sides that made the show too far-fetched. The first seasons were much more successful, managing the tricky balance of delivering a pretty preposterous story with a straight face and keeping it highly entertaining. Here's hoping the reboot does the same.
