ABC game shows: Alec Baldwin's Match Game and 3 other shows unlikely to return

ABC is all set to scrape off some of its game shows this year, including Alec Baldwin's Match Game.

Created by Frank Wayne, the show has been around for ages, the first one airing in 1962 and had its most recent season in 2017. The current season is hosted by Alec Baldwin and is now coming to an end owing to its cancelation.

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Why was Alec Baldwin's Match Game canceled?

ABC recently canceled a line of shows along with Match Game hosted by Alec Baldwin. Rumors went flying around as viewers thought that the cancelation was due to Baldwin's tragic incident on the set of Rust, where he accidentally shot and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

However, ABC's decision to cancel the show was not related to the incident as Match Game hasn't been in production since 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic, and only aired the remaining two episodes in 2021.

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Other shows that were canceled

Other shows canceled by ABC were Card Sharks, Celebrity Dating Game, The Hustler, Celebrity Family Feud, and The Ultimate Surfer. Card Sharks, hosted by Joel McHale, ran for two seasons and featured players trying to win a cash prize by wagering on cards before they were flipped over. It was a remake of the '80s game show.

The Celebrity Dating Game, hosted by Zooey Deschanel and Michael Bolton, had its first season airing in 2021. It brought celebrities to the Dating Game format as they quiz potential suitors trying to guess the star behind the wall. The show also had Bolton perform renditions of songs as clues for the contestants.

The Hustler, which called itself "the most diabolical game on television," brought together contestants to answer questions and put money in a pot. The plot twist in the show is that out of the contestants, one of them is a mole who knows the answers and is trying to hide their identity to win the prize. The show is based on a British format and ran for two seasons, starting in 2021.

Some shows were renewed for another season, like Celebrity Family Feud, Press Your Luck, and The $100,000 Pyramid.

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About Alec Baldwin's Match Game

Alec Baldwin's Match Game is based on the classic '70s hit and revolves around contestants filling in a blank in a sentence while trying to match the answers with a panel of celebrity guests. Baldwin has served as a host alongside a rotating panel of celebrities like Niecy Nash, Jack McBrayer, and Cheryl Hines. The show debuted in 2016 and ran for five seasons.

The most recent season of the show was shot before the pandemic, with a total of nine episodes with the final ones airing in July 2021. The show was executively produced by showrunner Scott St. John.