'Arthur' will end historic PBS run after 25 seasons

Arthur's clenched fist has never been more applicable.

Arthur has been canceled, Variety has confirmed.

"Arthur is the longest-running kids animated series in history and is known for teaching kindness, empathy and inclusion through many groundbreaking moments to generations of viewers," Carol Greenwald, the show's executive producer, told Variety. "In the winter of 2022, the 25th and final season of Arthur will debut. Arthur will continue to be available on PBS Kids for years to come. Producer GBH and PBS Kids are continuing to work together on additional Arthur content, sharing the lessons of Arthur and his friends in new ways."

Kathy Waugh, Arthur's original developer who also served as a writer on the series, first broke news during the July 13 episode of the Finding D.W. podcast:

"Arthur is no longer in production. We had our wrap party two years ago. And I think they've made a mistake—PBS—and I think Arthur should come back. And I know I'm not alone in thinking they made a mistake. I don't pay attention that much to things like ratings, so I don't know if it was a ratings issue or they just felt like it needed to be retired. So, to me, it just felt like an evergreen—like it was never gonna end—but it did end. It did end. We finished the last episode [of] Season 25 a few years ago. There was a wrap party, all of that. 

"However, PBS—and I wrote a couple of the scripts—decided to do some PSAs on various issues like voting, like hand-washing, pandemic-related issues, and they used the Arthur characters. So, they're still around. As far as I understand, not all the shows have aired. There's still a few yet to be aired, but they've all been produced."

Finding D.W. is hosted by Jason Szwimer, who voiced Arthur's younger sister D.W. from 2002-06. The podcast was launched in late June with the goal to "find and interview seven male strangers who all have one thing in common with him: they all played the voice of D.W."

Arthur debuted in October 1996 as an adaptation of Marc Brown's series of children's books.

Let us all collectively mourn by watching the legendary opening theme song sequence.