Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj Cancelled by Netflix

Netflix has a rep for being quick with the ax, and here’s some more news to back that up: Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj has come to an end after 40 episodes. The political comedy show’s host tweeted out the news this morning.

What a run. @patriotact has come to an end. I got to work with the best writers, producers, researchers, and animators in the game. My 2 babies were born and grew up with the show. TY to @Netflix and everyone who watched. Now it’s time to return these screens to Best Buy pic.twitter.com/4s4TrsKWe6

— Hasan Minhaj (@hasanminhaj) August 18, 2020

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Minhaj, a former Daily Show correspondent, launched the show in October 2018, and sped through six short seasons through June 2020. What set it apart from the crowded field of politically oriented comedy shows was its typical structure of a single in-depth story every episode, its regular focus on international politics and issues facing Asian-Americans, and the simple fact that it wasn’t just another show with a white dude at a desk covering the latest Donald Trump indignity. Minhaj created a more youthful and energetic tone with his active performance style and body language, moving around the stage and engaging directly with his studio audience. Along the way it caused controversy, with Netflix removing one early episode from its Saudi Arabian service, and also won both an Emmy and a Peabody. In Time named Minhaj one of the “100 most influential people in the world” in 2019.

All episodes of Patriot Act will remain on Netflix, and there’s a large amount of content on the show’s YouTube page.

Patriot Act was one of three weekly talk show-style programs hosted by notable comedians that Netflix launched in 2018. It’s the only one that wasn’t cancelled that same year. Minhaj might’ve gotten a couple of extra years more than Michelle Wolf and Joel McHale did, but Patriot Act has still come to an early and surprising end. Perhaps there’s a lesson here—maybe the streaming service that created the binge model and most thoroughly depends on it isn’t the best home for weekly comedy series that react to current events and breaking pop culture news. Just something to consider, Netflix.