NBC has ended months of uncertainty by reportedly cancelling two scripted shows: a medical drama and a freshman comedy. The decisions, the network’s first for the 2026-27 season, leave only two returning shows on the bubble as NBC finalizes its prime-time slate.

NBC has canceled Brilliant Minds and Stumble

Brilliant Minds, the sophomore drama starring Zachary Quinto, will not return for a third season. The Warner Bros. Television production occupied the Monday slot following The Voice, the same position it held in its first year, yet it posted NBC’s lowest linear drama ratings this season with the steepest year-over-year declines on the network.

NBC telegraphed the outcome in February by removing the series from its schedule and replacing it with two-hour Voice episodes. At the time, the network held back the remaining six episodes. Those episodes will now air post-cancellation on May 27, giving the series a brief summer run to close out its run.

The show’s struggles were not tied to a schedule change or lead-in loss. It retained its original time slot and still shed viewers at a rate that placed it at the bottom of NBC’s drama lineup, making the cancellation widely anticipated within the industry.

NBC also axed Stumble, the single-camera cheerleading mockumentary led by Jenn Lyon, after a single season. The comedy from Universal Television got solid reviews and audience scores on Rotten Tomatoes, sitting at 82% among critics and 96% with viewers. Still, those numbers did not translate into a viable linear audience.

The network scheduled Stumble on Fridays behind Reba McEntire’s multi-camera sitcom Happy’s Place, pairing a mockumentary with a traditional comedy block. NBC later shuffled the show’s slot in an attempt to broaden its reach, citing strong internal support for the series creatively. Still, the audience did not scale to a level that justified renewal (via Deadline).

With Brilliant Minds and Stumble off the schedule, two returning scripted series remain unresolved.