The second reboot of the intriguingly challenging mid-80s CBS series “The Equalizer,” following the Denzel Washington film adaptations, features Queen Latifah at the helm of this crime drama. It unfolds as a captivating and gratifying one-hour episodic show about a vigilante team led by a former CIA operative. They collaborate to correct injustices and dispense justice on behalf of those whom the system has neglected, targeting both the powerful and the elite to balance the scales.

However, after five seasons and a temporary production hiatus, the series wasn’t renewed for a sixth season. While no official explanation for the cancellation has been provided by the network, the show’s declining viewership likely contributed to its discontinuation.

The series is among several scripted CBS shows concluding this year, including “FBI: Most Wanted,” “Blue Bloods,” and the brief sitcom “Poppa’s House.” According to Deadline, the cancellation ensued after a budgetary reduction for “The Equalizer,” which reportedly involved a salary decrease for Queen Latifah, indicating that financial considerations may have influenced the network’s decision.

Before “The Equalizer” was handed its cancellation notice, those involved in making the series had planned for its sixth season to serve as its last; the final season would have had 13 episodes to tie off the show’s loose ends. Although the decision to end the series came down to the wire, the production team had been aware of the possibility and planned accordingly, writing the Season 5 finale so it could potentially work as an ending for the show as a whole in the event of a non-renewal. As a result, although there are a few questions that have been left unanswered, the decision to end the show with Detective Marcus Dante, played by Tory Kittles, proposing to Latifah’s Robyn offers a decent consolation prize for fans.

Despite its cancellation, the show met Queen Latifah’s original goal for its run. As she told Entertainment Weekly in 2021, “The world needs to see a little justice for a while. I think it is going to be something people are going to enjoy seeing for no less than five years. And I’m up for it.”

Prior to “The Equalizer” getting cut from the CBS lineup, a potential follow-up series had been in the works for some time. A backdoor pilot episode for the hoped-for spin-off, “Sins of the Father,” aired on April 20, 2025, featuring Titus Welliver, who starred as Harry Bosch on “Bosch.” In his “Equalizer” storyline, Welliver plays legendary former CIA agent Elijah Reed, whose daughter Samantha (Juani Feliz) contacts McCall after her dad goes missing.

The spin-off would have focused on these two characters, a formidable duo given the extensive weapons, martial arts, and general intelligence training Samantha received from her dear old dad. Sadly for fans looking for something to fill the “Bosch”-sized hole in their lives, the network passed on the series in April 2025 along with a spin-off of “The Neighborhood” and a new comedy series called “Zarna.” The show had not yet been given a name at the time of its cancellation.