Earlier this year, Netflix released its much-awaited family drama Country Comfort. Created by The Nanny’s Caryn Lucas, the show features an ensemble that includes singer/actress Katharine McPhee and Ugly Betty’s Eddie Cibrian.
Inspired by The Sound of Music, the show centers on a single father (Cibrian) who is left to raise five children following his wife’s death. Meanwhile, McPhee’s character makes her way into their lives after she gets hired to be the children’s nanny by a sudden twist of fate (she gets dumped by her boyfriend and her car breaks down). The show is full of heartwarming moments and delightful music performances led by McPhee herself. Despite the show’s following though, Netflix has decided to cancel the show after one season. Since then, fans have wondered what went wrong.
Country Comfort Was Intended To Be ‘Comfort Food’
Lucas had always known the kind of show that she wanted to make, and she pitched it to Netflix as she had envisioned it. “I wanted to create an old-school family comedy and I always wanted to do a show with music,” she told Forbes. “So I sat down and started to write and this came to me.” In the end, she came up with something that was both soulful and fun. “I see the show as comfort food, like a grilled cheese sandwich,” Lucas remarked.
Meanwhile, the casting came together pretty quickly. McPhee said she signed on after reading the script. “I loved the writing! Bailey is a hysterical complete mess,” the actress explained. “She has a great heart but might not be the best nanny or multi-tasker. And she's never going to give up this dream of becoming a country music star.”
For Cibrian, the show presented a unique opportunity that he didn’t want to miss out on. “For me, it was pretty simple, I get to play a cowboy in a sitcom. Who doesn’t wanna do that?” he told Collider. “That was a pretty easy sell for me. And the script was very funny, and yet very heartwarming. I feel like all of these characters had distinct personalities and were very established.” Interestingly, the actor also added, “This had a lot of potential and longevity.”
Country Comfort's Production Was Disrupted By The Pandemic Shutdown
When Hollywood temporarily shut everything down due to COVID-19, many shows were affected. These included Country Comfort who had only managed to shoot four episodes back then. And so, when they finally resumed filming, changes had to be made. For instance, while the first four episodes featured a live audience, the successive episodes were filmed without.
At the same time, the show also had to adjust with McPhee’s growing body as she had to work on the show through her pregnancy (she welcomed her first child with husband David Foster earlier this year). For the actress, it was quite a unique experience. “You're really short of breath when you're pregnant, so it was a bit of a challenge for me,” McPhee explained. She also recalled having to conceal her bump for the show. “I felt I looked more pregnant than I actually did, so I definitely was holding a purse a certain way (to cover myself),” the actress said. “My costumes changed a little bit: I was in very tight jeans and little crop tops in the first four episodes, and then you come back for Episode 5, and things just become a little more drapey.”
In the end, the show did manage to conceal McPhee’s pregnancy successfully. That said, it failed to go on for a second season.
Here’s The Real Reason Why Netflix Canceled Country Comfort
Especially upon its release, Country Comfort drew sizable viewership among Netflix subscribers. In fact, the show even reportedly reached the streaming platform’s top ten shows upon its debut. At the same time, Country Comfort also recently snagged a Primetime Emmy for its cinematography. And so, when Cibrian announced on Instagram that they were “getting so close to finding out about” the second season, fans of the show may have thought that Country Comfort would be saved. However, that clearly wasn’t the case.
Cibrian may have asked fans to “watch, rewatch, tell others to watch and rewatch, so we can make the decision for @netflix and @netflixfamily an easy one” but sadly, that wasn’t enough to convince the streaming giant to renew the show. Reports indicate that there had been signs of trouble early on, especially after the show dropped out of the top 10 in just a little over a week. It has also been said that Netflix only prefers to renew shows that manage to stay in the top 10 for at least 30 days in one region. Sadly, Country Comfort failed to do that.
At the same time, some have also pointed out that Country Comfort’s failure may be attributed to Netflix’s ongoing struggle with multi-camera sitcoms. When it canceled Country Comfort, the streaming giant also confirmed that it also axed Gabriel Iglesias’ Mr. Iglesias and Kevin James’ The Crew. At the moment, it is unclear if Netflix has plans to do another show with Lucas. Since the cancellation, the company has already closed a development deal with James.