The Venture Bros. creators are holding out hope for a wrap-up special

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

After seven seasons over the course of seventeen years, Adult Swim officially canceled The Venture Bros. last month, bringing an end to the adventures of Dr. Thaddeus S. "Rusty" Venture, his sons Hank and Dean, bodyguard Brock Samson, and a multitude of fantastic supporting characters. Although it had been two years since the last season of the show aired, fans had become accustomed to a lengthy wait between seasons, and given that The Venture Bros. had been greenlit for an eighth season, there was little reason to be concerned, or so we thought.

The Venture Bros. creator Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer recently spoke with NPR about the cancellation of the the series, which came as a surprise as they were in the middle of writing scripts for the new season. In the seventh season finale, Hank Venture stepped away from his family, which is definitely not how Publick and Hammer wanted to leave things.

We would never end the show with one of our characters going away. We have a character walking away from the Venture family, which is not the way Jackson and I think of the Ventures. There is love and family at the core of all this, and yes [it's] dysfunctional… but love and family is a deep part of our show. And to have somebody flip his gears and just go off in search for himself… that's not the kind of ending we would ever write. That doesn't feel good to me.

Despite the cancellation, Publick and Hammer remain hopeful that they'll be able to wrap up the story of The Venture Bros. with one last special as they've been in "on-again, off-again" talks with Adult Swim about that very subject. For their part, Adult Swim has said, "We also want more Venture Bros. and have been working with Jackson and Doc to find another way to continue the Venture Bros. story." Let's keep our fingers crossed. Even if the series never returns, Publick and Hammer are very proud of what they've been able to accomplish and the passionate fans that have remained loyal to the series. "I am proud that we made something almost entirely on our terms and it worked," said Publick . "I didn't know how much we would mean to a lot of people, and to know that that's from just spilling your guts and trying your hardest to make the thing as good by your standards as possible… means a lot."