King of the Hill: When and Where It Will Be Renewed?

By Jivika On Aug 12, 2022

The low-key humorous, wonderfully satirical take on the blue-collar existence that “King of the Hill” (co-created by Mike Judge and airing on Fox from 1997 to 2010) offers makes for a reliable source of laughter. The show follows the Hill family as they navigate adulthood, with father Hank (voiced by Judge), wife Peggy (Kathy Najimy), and son Bobby (Pamela Adlon) in the center.

Despite being a reliable performer in the Fox Sunday night lineup, the show was almost canceled multiple times in its first TV run, despite having aired more than 240 episodes. Gary Newman, the co-chair of the television division of 20th Century Fox, said in an interview with TV Week in 2008: “That show has had its final rites read to it multiple times and keeps rearing its head again.”

Considering its massive viewership and critical acclaim, why did Fox finally cancel “King of the Hill”? The truth is that “King of the Hill” was the second longest-running animated sitcom in TV history when it was pulled from the Fox lineup. Only “The Simpsons,” the undisputed King of scripted television at the time, surpassed it.

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There Are Several Possible Reasons King of the Hill Was Cancelled

Long-running shows like “King of the Hill” inevitably go through ups and downs in the ratings, even if they still do well with audiences entering their last season. Around 6 million people watched the show’s previous season, even though it had some down years.

As a result, “King of the Hill” surpassed “American Dad!,” another popular Fox cartoon series. The newer cartoon series “American Dad” attracted 5.9 million viewers, but unlike the Hill family, it was not canceled (via CBR). So, it’s unlikely that low numbers were the only reason the show was canceled.

The cancellation of “King of the Hill” appears to have been due in part to the timing of its airing on television. At the moment, Fox was deliberating where to slot another freshly ordered show into its Animation Dominance schedule. The Cleveland Show, a spinoff of MacFarlane, Richard Appel, and Mike Henry’s successful “Family Guy,” would replace “King of the Hill.”

How did creator Mike Judge react to learning that “King of the Hill” had been canceled? As Judge explained to The Chicago Tribune in 2009, he is at peace with the show’s cancellation “In my opinion, now is a good time to pause. In contrast to others who prefer to see a project through to its completion, I prefer to call it quits when it’s still in good shape.”

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Kathy Najimy Was Made Speechless by William Devane

In an interview with Jim Halterman of The Futon Critic from 2008, Kathy Najimy gushed about William Devane, one of the guest performers on Season 13 of “King of the Hill.” “I’ve got to tell you, William Devane from ‘Knots Landing’ is on, too, and he’s sexy as ever,” she said. A smitten Najimy let out her trademark chuckle, as Halterman mentioned.

Najimy noted that Devane was a mainstay on the primetime serial opera “Knots Landing” for a decade, playing the gorgeous corporate honcho and politician Greg Sumner. In Episode 13 of Season 13 of “King of the Hill,” he guest starred as Chuck Garrison, the man Hank Judge’s (K. Callan’s) mother, Tilly, marries after knowing him for only a short time. Despite Hank’s initial distaste for Chuck, the two eventually bonded off their exhaustion from dealing with Tilly’s impulsive behavior.

Since the series finale of “Knots Landing” aired in 1993, Devane has remained quite active. Both “Interstellar” (2014) and the sci-fi horror film “Hollow Man” (2000) featured him prominently, and he also starred in 20 episodes of “24” as Secretary of Defense James Heller.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why Did They Stop Making King of the Hill?

FOX dropped King of the Hill when a TV network cancels a show because the show’s ratings are low or going down. If not enough people between the ages of 18 and 49 are watching, the show’s worth is called into question.

Is There Anything in King of the Hill About Beavis and Butthead?

Are there any links or similarities between the two? No characters from one show have ever been on the other, but Tom Anderson from Beavis and Butthead looks a lot like Hank Hill.

What Makes King of the Hill So Great?

King of the Hill characters was always so good at starting as stereotypes and then going far beyond them. Even better, it did this well for stereotypes about country bumpkins, which are easy to make fun of.