ITV cancels Jekyll & Hyde

UK commercial broadcaster ITV has pulled the plug on its fantasy drama Jekyll & Hyde after poor ratings and controversy over its graphic scenes.

Jekyll & Hyde saw its ratings drop sharply

The teatime drama made headlines when it debuted last November after more than 800 people complaining to media watchdog regulator Ofcom that some of its content, including a scene that showed a man being beaten to death, was unsuitable for pre-watershed audiences.

ITV was also forced to postpone one of the episodes following the Paris terrorist attacks in November and also moved the show around on its schedules during the festive period.

The ITV Studios-produced show opened to ratings of 4.8 million viewers but plummeted to 1.8 million for the final episode of its first season.

Its replacement for the Sunday teatime slot, Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands, has only opened to 2.6 million viewers for its first episode.

Creator Charlie Higson (The Fast Show) tweeted on Tuesday that it was a “sad day.”

The series was commissioned by ITV director of drama Steve November and head of drama series Jane Hudson. It followed the story of Robert Jekyll, the grandson of the original doctor, in 1930s London.