Onto the next? Not on Syfy, at least. After more than 230 episodes, and nearly 14 years of searching for the truth of the paranormal, Ghost Hunters will be ending its run on the network following Season 11, which premieres Aug. 3, according to its star.
The announcement came via show lead Jason Hawes’ Facebook page on Tuesday night.
In the post, Hawes said, “With heavy heart we want to inform everyone that we are choosing at this time to end our relationship with SyFy channel.”
He went on to write, “We’ve been one of their top rated and top watched shows since TAPS and Pilgrim Films decided to join forces and create the show Ghost Hunters.”
He also added Ghost Hunters may return in another form: “There are some huge things in the works with TAPS, Ghost Hunters, Pilgrim Films and so much more.”
Debuting in 2004 on the then named Sci-Fi Channel, the legacy of the docusoap, where a team of investigators (The Atlantic Paranormal Society) seek to debunk or affirm claims of Ghostly activity, cannot be ignored.
The show was a Major hit for the Network and propelled Syfy Channel to the top watched Cable Station on Wednesday nights, Pulling in millions of viewers per episode.
It was also Syfy’s longest-running series, and ushered in an era of similarly-themed reality-TV shows. But the series is the only one to truly become part of the pop culture lexicon and break through to the mainstream.
Co-founders, and original co-leads, Grant Wilson and Hawes (famously Roto-Rooter plumbers by day, busters by night) appeared on late-night talk shows and The Today Show, and the series was spoofed on Saturday Night Live, and South Park.
It spawned spinoffs, live episodes, merchandise, apps, and Ghost hunting events at famously “Haunted” landmarks. The Ghost Hunters lingo, and use of night vision cameras, and other gadgets, could also be felt throughout movies and scripted TV, such as Paranormal Activity, The Conjuring, and Supernatural, among others.
The end of Ghost Hunters at Syfy is an end to an interesting era at the network. The existence of the paranormal may not have ever been conclusively proven on the show, but the series leaves behind evidence of a Syfy legacy.