‘Casual,’ An Important Stepping Stone In Hulu History, Will End After Its Fourth Season

Hulu has set an end date for its Casual relationship. The streaming service has picked up a fourth and final season of Zander Lehmann‘s dramedy.

Casual tells the story of Valerie (Michaela Watkins), who moves in with her brother Alex (Tommy Dewey) after going through a divorce. All three seasons of the show have received mostly positive reviews from critics, though the decision to cancel the program after its fourth go-around is likely due a relative lack of interest from Hulu subscribers.

Even if it ultimately leaves a minimal impression on viewers, Casual will still go down as a relevant part of its distributor’s history. The show’s nomination at the 2015 Golden Globes, where it was up for Best Television Series – Comedy or Musical, represented the most significant piece of award show recognition Hulu had received up to that point. Two years later, the streaming service would notch a major victory against its rivals when it took home a massive haul at the Emmys

Shows like Casual, Amazon’s Alpha House, and Netflix’s Lilyhammer, while not necessarily prestigious on their own, are worth remembering because of the degree to which they helped legitimize the original content aspirations of their respective home platforms. Casual showed that Hulu was capable of competing in the crowded streaming industry, even if the dramedy didn’t end up sporting a huge audience of its own.

For the Casual fans who are out there, there will still be one more season of the show, which will allow Lehmann to end Valerie and Alex’s story in a conclusive way. Look for the show’s final episodes at some point in 2018.