Showtime Cancels 'Weeds' After Eighth Season

Final season to premiere July 1

By Lindsay Rubino -- Broadcasting & Cable, 6/13/2012 12:53:03 PM

Showtime confirmed Wednesday that Weeds will end its run after its eighth season.

"Weeds has been a seminal series, which was key in establishing Showtime as a home for great original programming," said David Nevins, president of entertainment, Showtime Networks Inc. "It had a groundbreaking run; entering its eighth season, it's one of the longest-running comedies in the history of cable. We all felt that it was the right time and right way to end it. It was very important to us that we bring the story of Nancy Botwin and her family to a satisfying conclusion for the devoted fans that have spent years supporting this series. Jenji has managed to surprise us every step of the way and I am confident in her plan for a spectacular series end."

Weeds will premiere its final season on July 1. The show, created by Jenji Kohan and producd by Liosngate, averaged 720,000 viewers in its last season, with 560,000 tuning in for its season finale in September 2011.

Weeds follows Nancy Botwin (Mary-Louis Parker), a suburban widow-turned-marijuana dealer.

Entertainment Weekly first reported the story.