Did the movie cause MLP to end early?

[CastletonSnob 3,025]

Did the movie underperforming cause Hasbro to end the show early, or did they just think 9 seasons was enough?

[Goat-kun 2,498]

Why does a big soulless corporation do anything?

[Flutterstep 46,288]

I think it was going to end anyway. If the movie did unexpectedly out perform however, then I could see them capitalising on a sequel and additional seasons.

[Nsxile 25,672]

12 minutes ago, VG_Addict said:

Did the movie underperforming cause Hasbro to end the show early, or did they just think 9 seasons was enough?

It didn't underperform though... It made 61.3 million and it's budget was 6.5 million. Citation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Little_Pony:_The_Movie_(2017_film). The real reason the show is ending is likely the year on year drop in viewers.

[Steve Piranha 28,780]

50 minutes ago, Nsxile said:

It didn't underperform though... It made 61.3 million and it's budget was 6.5 million. Citation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Little_Pony:_The_Movie_(2017_film). The real reason the show is ending is likely the year on year drop in viewers.

Well, according to the leaks, that was not the case. Besides, it has been mentioned publicly they were at least disappointed with it’s performance.

About the if the movie has something to do with FIM ending this season, I don’t think that’s the case. The movie didn’t perform as expected for the same reason as FIM is ending now: the decline in sales and viewership since S5 I think it was 

[MangoFoalix 24,898]

Excuse me what? Why would the movie have anything to do with the show ending "early". Also, I really wouldn't call having 9 seasons and over 200 episodes early one bit.

[cuteycindyhoney 13,283]

7 minutes ago, TheTaZe said:

Excuse me what? Why would the movie have anything to do with the show ending "early". Also, I really wouldn't call having 9 seasons and over 200 episodes early one bit.

I agree. nine seasons, a theatrical film, a special, a spin off series of movies and specials is a HUGE body of work. This is not a case of "Oh, it's ending early!" Look at a couple other favorites of mine. "My Life as a Teenage Robot" had three seasons totaling only 41 episodes. "Kim Possible" fans had to argue Disney into producing one more season  for a total of four, with 87 episodes. How is MLP:FIM ending early, after almost a DECADE?

[Thrond 3,257]

What do you mean, "early"? This show has been on for nearly a decade. 

[Rixton 1,105]

I read somewhere they planed it for 9 seasons. And there will be G5 (I hope).

[RDDash 18,866]

MLP never ends, it's just gets a reboot. . The movie did quite well (coughing sounds) considering it was leaked almost instantaneously, and nobody actually cared about that.

[Megas 27,064]

It's been going on for 9 seasons plus a movie, comic line and a successful spin-off. There's no "ending it early" it's gone on long enough

8 hours ago, Steve Piranha said:

Well, according to the leaks, that was not the case. Besides, it has been mentioned publicly they were at least disappointed with it’s performance.

About the if the movie has something to do with FIM ending this season, I don’t think that’s the case. The movie didn’t perform as expected for the same reason as FIM is ending now: the decline in sales and viewership since S5 I think it was 

I also remember the leaks saying the movie leak also hurt it's performance. Everyone fucking pirated and started talking about it unfiltered everywhere

[Rixton 1,105]

8 hours ago, R.D.Dash said:

MLP never ends, it's just gets a reboot. . The movie did quite well (coughing sounds) considering it was leaked almost instantaneously, and nobody actually cared about that.

I guess there is a chance that G4 will have future inside the fandom, it's not going to end like 1->0.
These ponies and every other character is someway now part of us, so they cannot just vanish.

[SaburoDaimando 1,196]

ANd the thing is that the series has become the most successful out of Hasbro when it comes to animated series.  Even more so than Generation 1 Transformers.  If the series were to end early, it would have been at Season 3 instead of now.  

 

But it hasn't.  ANd lemme say this.  Not every cartoon series lasts as long as Animaniacs has in my childhood.  My Little Pony managed to do that and put out a spin-off series, an animated movie, and even a special(With another one on the way).  

I admit. Nothing does last forever.  Even the Marvel Cinematic universe has changed with the conclusion of Avengers: Endgame.  But then again, sometimes ending the series is far better than continuing on(See Simpsons and Family Guy)

[FlareGun45 2,221]

No.... Hasbro's the reason

[n1029 224]

My thinking is they had the intention of ending it after 9 and the movie just might've extended that if it were a huge hit, rather than an unremarkable breakeven. 

I did get the sense the movie was made with one foot out the door, though, as if they didn't want to commit too deeply to it as a continuing property.

[Number62 1,247]

The best way to find the answer is to ask the creative team.

[ExplosionMare 18,007]

Pretty sure they felt 9 seasons was enough. For most shows, that’s probably a good place to stop.

[Octavia Heartstrings 28,407]

Nine seasons is hardly early for a show to end.

[Mongo 45]

The show is ending because the franchise is evolving, hence GENERATIONS. Transformers did it and that too is a Hasbro franchise.
 

Think about reboots strategically guys.  You reboot a series to attract your existing fans and attract new.  If it's done right, your base grows as well as your revenue!

 

Honestly, we have no clue what the next generation will be like.  We could have all the Mane 7 (counting Starlight) as alicorned princesses with the diverse Young 6 matured and a whole new cast of main characters.

 

Possibilities are still endless.

 

Edited June 13, 2019 by Mongo

[CypherHoof 26,479]

On 5/26/2019 at 3:05 PM, Steve Piranha said:

it has been mentioned publicly they were at least disappointed with it’s performance.

I literally can't understand why.

It did better, as a multiple of its budget, than most hollywood movies (more than twice the return of bumblebee, for example) despite being almost unmarketed, and massively leaked before release (the full 8K version was available via some sites). DVD/Blueray sales were also strong.

I think it is more likely that Hasbro just went "oh, declining toy sales? time for a reboot then, that ALWAYS works".

[Sepul-Coloratura 756]

I think they missed the best timing to release an MLP movie. It made it seem like it caused the franchise to end because it was released too late. If it was 3-4 years earlier, it might have made the franchise even bigger than it ever will be. The movie could have had better ideas since the show is not jaded yet, relatively speaking, and might have had more room to explore for interesting ideas, making a better movie. The time MLP the Movie was released was a perfect timing for a sequel if that happened. After season 7 and releasing it's movie seems like they did everything with the franchise and just doing something big before it's end.

Edited June 15, 2019 by Sepul-Coloratura

[Kadeda 178]

I'm pretty sure it just that it's been 9 seasons and they just feel it's enough. It's still pretty successful. The movie is honestly, mediocre. It would have done better if it was better but I don't think it's a performance issue. They probably hyped to work on G5 for now on and from what we heard from rumors... I'm excited to see it. I'll miss princess purple but it's time to move on. If they do end up making season 10 tho... I would be pretty excited. Just, more ponies overall!

Edited June 15, 2019 by Kadeda

[n1029 224]

Got a bit of an answer on this from Big Jim tonight. Seems they knew the show was ending before the movie was even released.

[Steve Piranha 28,780]

You know? It’s funny this issue with ponies ending early...... damn, syndication requires 65 episodes, and many shows would kill to get there. Nine seasons I even more. Hell, Avengers Earth Mightiest Heroes deserved to get sindication before horses, but it didn’t 

[KatonRyu 1,026]

On 5/27/2019 at 12:22 AM, This Whomps said:

I also remember the leaks saying the movie leak also hurt it's performance. Everyone fucking pirated and started talking about it unfiltered everywhere

Regarding that, I think a lot of bronies who wanted to watch the movie legitimately ended up pirating it because they weren't from English-speaking countries. I fully intended to go and watch it in the theater, but there weren't any cinemas carrying the English version, and I really don't like the Dutch dub one bit.

As for the show ending early...it's been nearly ten years, and I fully advocate ending a series before it goes completely stale. Look how many times the same basic plots have been rehashed at this point, and look how some of the characters have been Flanderized. I'm glad the show will end before that trend continues. It's the same reason I'm happy shows like Gravity Falls and Star vs. the Forces of Evil ended strong.