“The Great American Baking Show” has reportedly been canceled by Roku after four seasons on the streaming service. Judged by Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith, the series acts as a sister series to the UK’s “The Great British Bake Off” and has been on the air in some form since 2015.
However, recent reports from Broadcast suggest that the show is coming to an end, with Roku choosing not to greenlit a future season of the series. Casey Wilson and Andrew Rannells hosted the most recent incarnation of the series, which follows amateur bakers competing in the familiar Signature, Technical and Showstopper challenges.
The news means Hollywood and Leith’s time judging the U.S. competition together has seemingly come to an end.
‘The Great American Baking Show’ First Moved to Roku in 2022
Like its British counterpart, “The Great American Baking Show” has gone through a number of transformations over the years. This has included changes to the cast of judges and hosts, changing formats, and switches to different networks.
The first American adaptation of “The Great British Bake Off” was the 2013 series “The American Baking Competition.” Airing on CBS, it was hosted by Jeff Foxworthy with Hollywood and Marcela Valladolid acting as judges.
ABC then produced its own adaptation in the form of “The Great American Baking Show.” Initially, Nia Vardalos and Ian Gomez took on hosting duties with original “The Great British Bake Off” judge Mary Berry joined by Johnny Iuzzini as judges. This version of the series ran for five seasons, with the likes of Ayesha Curry, Emma Bunton, and Anthony Adams becoming hosts and Hollywood returning to host.
The Roku Channel was announced as the new home of the show in 2022 and the series is now in its ninth season in total, with four airing on Roku. This incarnation saw Hollywood and Leith team up once again, mirroring their roles on “The Great British Bake Off.”
In recent years, Roku and Love Productions have also added a number of celebrity specials and spin-offs to its line-up, with the likes of Julian Edelman and Von Miller competing in the tent.
Radio Times approached both Roku and Love Productions to get official confirmation about the show’s cancellation but neither provided a comment.
Prue Leith Had Already Announced She Was Leaving the ‘Bake Off’ Franchise
Even if Roku had ordered another season, the judging lineup would have needed a significant change.
The supposed axing of “The Great American Baking Show” comes after Leith announced that she was stepping down from her role on “The Great British Baking Show” and its spin-offs, including the U.S. version.
Leith joined the show following its move from BBC to Channel 4 in the U.K. and has judged bakers on nine seasons and several celebrity specials.
British television writer and chef Nigella Lawson has been signed on to replace Leith as a judge, and she is set to join Hollywood in the iconic tent later this year when the series returns to Channel 4. Leith had previously championed the idea of Lawson taking over her judging duties.
