Fox nixes country music family drama ‘Monarch’ after one season

It was shot in metro Atlanta last year
Susan Sarandon, left, and Trace Adkins in the series premiere of "Monarch." (Fox/TNS)

Credit: TNS

Credit: TNS

Susan Sarandon, left, and Trace Adkins in the series premiere of "Monarch." (Fox/TNS)

“Monarch,” Fox’s effort to try to create a country version of “Empire,” didn’t stick. The network canceled the family drama after just one season.

The series, which was shot last fall into the winter in metro Atlanta, was going to be a mid-season show replacement but instead was moved to a fall debut after a change in showrunners.

Fox promoted Susan Sarandon as the queen of the country music family, but she ended up only appearing in occasional flashbacks after the first episode.

Critics weren’t impressed. Rotten Tomatoes critics rating was just 31% with this consensus: “Heavy on the clichés while disappointingly light on Susan Sarandon, this ‘Monarch’ is a so-so successor to a lineage of soaps about families warring over their business empire.” Viewers liked it even less with a 25% positive rating.

It opened with 4 million overnight viewers but slipped below 2 million for subsequent episodes.

The season and series finale aired Monday.