NBC cancels plans for new Cosby sitcom as allegations mount

NBC has canceled plans for a new Bill Cosby sitcom as sexual assault allegations pile up against the 77-year-old comedian, joining Netflix in the list of media providers moving away from plans involving the star.

The Comcast-owned NBC first announced plans for the unnamed Cosby sitcom back in January — one that would follow a similar format as The Cosby Show in terms of a proposed half-hour runtime and family-oriented subject matter. The news spread quickly, even garnering headlines like "Can Bill Cosby save NBC comedy, or will he struggle like Michael J. Fox?," as HitFix wondered early this year.

However, when sexual assault allegations against Cosby began to proliferate after comedian Hannibal Buress' bit on the subject went viral last month, NBC began facing public ire over working with the former Cosby Show star. Then yesterday, when rape allegations from Janice Dickinson surfaced and public opinion showed that 72 percent of viewers thought NBC should cut ties with Cosby, the hammer appeared to fall.

According to Buzzfeed, a source indicated that NBC decided to pull the plug sometime on Wednesday morning. So, no new Cosby material from NBC — not this year, anyway. No plans for a premiere date were announced:

In January, NBC announced with fanfare a plan to bring Bill Cosby back to television. Now, that pilot has been killed as Cosby's public persona continues to suffer from recent and renewed accusations from multiple accusers that the comedian, now 77, sexually assaulted them. According to a source, on Wednesday morning, the plug was officially pulled on the show. 

NBC, however, has issued no comment on the matter, except to confirm that the Cosby show is dead, telling Buzzfeed that "we never went as far as a delivered script and it had never even been greenlit to production." The deal did call for NBC to pay Cosby a large penalty fee should the project not get ordered to pilot, according to Deadline.

Cosby's Netflix special, Bill Cosby 77, was supposed to premiere Nov. 27. Netflix canceled plans to air its new special earlier this week.

[BuzzFeed]