Starz has announced that season three will be the last for “Da Vinci’s Demons,” creator David S. Goyer’s historical fantasy series that focuses a young and tormented Leonardo da Vinci in Renaissance-era Florence.
The final season, which will premiere at 8 p.m. on Oct. 24, shows da Vinci (played by Tom Riley) witnessing his personal inventions being employed by Ottoman invaders during the battle of Otranto. John Shiban serves as showrunner. The drama is produced by Adjacent Productions.
“While ending Leonardo’s journey is bittersweet for me, I’m happy we’re ending the story on a high note. Leonardo was famous for his mirror-writing, and there’s a symmetry to the entire series — between the first episode and the final one — that I think the maestro would have appreciated,” said Goyer. “I want to thank our dedicated fans around the world for viewing and engaging with such passion. I want to thank Starz for joining me on this crazy romp. And I want to thank Tom Riley for turning in a consistently brilliant performance. It’s no small feat to portray a genius, but Tom did it with grace and humor. I hope everyone enjoys these final episodes as much as we enjoyed making them.”
The cancellation comes at an interesting time for the premium cabler. Starz is currently drawing a sizable audience for its Saturday night drama “Power,” whose second season is averaging nearly 2 million viewers in Nielsen’s “live-plus 3” estimates. Another good performer, “Outlander,” averaged about 1.8 million viewers in “live-plus 3” for its first season, which wrapped in late May. New series “Ash vs. Evil Dead,” which brings Bruce Campbell back as his famous chainsaw-wielding hero, and the Patrick Stewart starrer “Blunt Talk” are also gaining buzz.
“The steadfast fans of ‘Da Vinci’s Demons’ have been asking about the next installment of this story, and we’re excited to roll it out. David Goyer brought us a plan to portray the unknown early years of a genius, and we think the fans will enjoy this final chapter which segues into the da Vinci that history knows. John Shiban has done a tremendous job of building on past seasons and by showing how da Vinci matures as his challenges grow,” said Starz managing director Carmi Zlotnik.
