There’s a reason Disney Channel ditched some of its most beloved shows long before they had actually run their course and fizzled in popularity, and when we learned the reason for the premature removal of some of those shows, it only made us more thankful that the dreaded reason is no longer part of Disney’s practice.
Epic Television For Young People in the 90s and 2000s
For Disney fans who grew up in the 1990s and 2000s, Disney Channel was the go-to place for many of the most popular shows on cable television at the time.
The 1990s brought fans several original Disney Channel series, including Flash Forward (December 1995), Going Wild with Jeff Corwin (September 1997), Bug Juice (February 1998), The Famous Jett Jackson (October 1998), and others.
Disney Channel only got better and more engaging as fans raced into the new millennium at lightning speed, embracing brand-new Original Series shows from Disney, including Even Stevens (June 2000), Lizzie McGuire (January 2001), Kim Possible (June 2002), That’s So Raven (January 2003), Lilo & Stitch: The Series (September 2003), and The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (March 2005).
The era continued with The Emperor’s New School (January 2006), Hannah Montana (March 2006), Phineas and Ferb (August 2007), The Suite Life on Deck (September 2008), Sonny With a Chance (February 2009), Good Luck Charlie (April 2010), and Shake It Up (April 2014).
Related: ‘Good Luck Charlie’ Star Shocks Fans With Three Huge Revelations About Her Post-Disney Life
What did Disney Channel Original Series shows have in common? Each of them could only be seen on Disney Channel (and some of them would become Disney Channel icons), and none of them aired for longer than a couple of years.
Too Much of a Good Thing?
Over the years, fans of Disney Channel’s Original Series shows have wondered why–at the height of the popularity of their favorite shows–did many of them simply vanish?
Did Disney have something against continuing the production of a series that was beloved by millions of fans? No, but the company did have a strict rule that led to the premature death of many of Disney Channel’s most popular series.
In the 1990s and 2000s, a now-defunct rule was in place at Disney Channel, though most fans knew nothing about it. Sadly, the little-known rule called for the cancellation of an Original Series show once 65 episodes had aired.
65 and Done!
Lizzie McGuire, which made actress Hillary Duff a household name, suddenly ended after only two seasons in 2004. That was despite its widespread popularity among Disney Channel viewers. But Disney’s Lizzie McGuire wasn’t alone.
Prior to the year 2005, most of Disney Channel’s Original Series shows were cancelled after 65 episodes had aired, including Even Stevens and Phil of the Future. Some even ended before there were 65 total episodes.
There was even a special reason for the number 65. According to The New York Post, “that count would allow four other shows to air during the week over a year so the network could keep delivering fresh content.”
Things changed, however, with a new series called That’s So Raven that debuted in 2003.
‘That’s So Raven’ Changes Everything
Debuting in 2003, the teen series tells the story of the adventures of the Baxter family. The show was a blockbuster for Disney Channel and quickly became the highest-rated original program in the history of Disney Channel, even surpassing the network’s wildly successful Lizzie McGuire.
That’s So Raven was commissioned for a fourth season in 2005, marking the first time in the channel’s history that an Original Series had gone beyond three seasons.
“It is our most successful series,” said former Disney Channel president Rich Ross at the time. “It has taken us where we got with Lizzie and ratcheted it up to another level.”
That’s So Raven ultimately reached 100 episodes, pioneering a brand-new way of doing things at Disney Channel and forever doing away with the mandatory 65-episode rule.
Now you know!