Red Table Talk is Cancelled as Facebook Watch Originals Come to an End

In what may be a surprising turn of events for some, the Facebook Watch original series, “Red Table Talk”, and its spinoff “Red Table Talk: The Estefans,” are the last shows being canceled as a result of Meta’s decision to shut down Facebook Watch originals. The show’s next season was already getting a fair amount of buzz, leaving fans and viewers in shock.

If you’re unfamiliar with the show, “Red Table Talk” was a talk show hosted by Jada Pinkett Smith, her daughter Willow Smith, and Jada’s mother Adrienne Banfield-Norris. It first premiered on May 7, 2018, with Sheree Fletcher, Will Smith’s ex-wife, as a featured guest, discussing how they navigate their blended family. The show covered various topics, including interpersonal relationships, mental health, trending pop culture, and much more.

Some of the most notable episodes included “Black and Gay in America with Don Lemon,” where the cast took a trip to New York for an exclusive interview with the former CNN anchor to discuss the obstacles he faces being a gay, Black man in a high profile job and the struggles gay men face in the Black community as a whole, and “How Mothers Damage Their Daughters: Could This Be You?,” a dialogue with hosts and psychotherapist Kelly McDaniel, on how their relationships with their mothers shaped their lives. Red Table Talk quickly became a fan favorite because of the candid and honest nature of its intergenerational conversations.

So, we ask, why is Meta shutting down Facebook Originals, and what does this mean for the future of the buzz-worthy show?

Facebook already began to scale back on its original scripted shows in 2020 after canceling shows like Elizabeth Olsen’s “Sorry for Your Loss” to focus on reality-based and unscripted shows like “Tom Brady’s Tom vs. Time.”  According to Deadline, Meta has made the decision to continue to pivot its focus away from original programming and turn towards more user-generated content and creating more VR experiences in Meta Horizon Worlds. This is after Mina Lefevre, now former Head of Development and Programming at Meta, departed the company as part of the recent layoffs.

Although this may come as a disappointment to fans, it is important to note that the show could find a new home with another platform such as Hulu, Netflix, Apple TV, etc. So it’s not at all the end of Red Table Talk. Westbrook Studios, Will and Jada’s production company, are currently shopping for a new network to pick up the series.

Regardless of where it lands, it’s obvious the impact “Red Table Talk” has made and will continue to make in the future. The series had a strong 5 seasons jam packed with important and timely matters and provided a platform for real and honest discussions to be had in an intimate setting. As we say goodbye for the time being, we can only hope that Jada, Willow, and Adrienne will land a new home soon where they continue to make a positive impact.

If you need a Red Table Talk fix, you can watch all past episodes on the show’s Facebook channel.