After 1 season, 36 episodes and a number of nasty rumors, Nickelodeon has announced that ratings hit Sam & Cat, starring iCarly alum Jennette McCurdy and Victorious alum Ariana Grande will be airing its series finale on July 17.
In a statement to Deadline.com, the network said, "Nickelodeon will not be producing more episodes of Sam & Cat. We are very proud of the show and its very talented cast and we wish them all the best."
The spinoff from two former Nickelodeon hit shows was originally set to be only 20 episodes long, but after a ratings high of 4.2 million people tuning in for the premiere-the network's best live-action debut in three years-the episode count was raised to 40.
But after a series of nasty rumors-Jennette McCurdy's racy pics leaked online, whispers that the two leads, McCurdy and Grande weren't getting along in real life and that the network has not been treating McCurdy well, the series was doomed.
In March 2014, McCurdy was noticeably absent from the 2014 Kids' Choice Awards in Los Angeles because of the supposed rift with Nickelodeon, mainly caused by the rumors that McCurdy's paycheck was a lot lower than Grande's.
Shortly after she tweeted, "A lot of you guys are asking why I didn't attend the KCAs.... I wish I could explain everything as thoroughly as I would like to, but unfortunately a simpler explanation is all I can write. I was put in an uncomfortable, compromising, unfair situation (many of you have guessed what it is) and I had to look out for me. I chose to not go because sticking up for what is right and what is fair is what my mom taught me is ALWAYS the most important thing. I want to thank those of you who have reached out with kind words of support, McCurdians and Arianators alike. No matter who or what you support, I believe in supporting fairness first. If you have done that, thank you."
In return, Grande posted a tweet to clear up the rumors: "I hate addressing rumors and I hate gossip but this is really bothering me. Jennette and I agreed upfront that we would be treated equally on this show in all regards (as we should be, considering we each work just as hard as the other on this show). The rumors circulating about our contracts and our salary not being equal are absolutely ridiculous and false. I don't know who's putting these idiotic quotes out there but I thought I'd straighten it out and try to end this nonsense. As far as the show goes, I don't know what's happening because I'm not directly involved with the problem but I just wanted to address this one rumor in particular because I am NOT making more money than my costar, nor do I think I should be. So we can all move on and get out of our heads that this was a money thing cause I don't play like that at all. I am, have always been and always will be about equality and fairness."
Sam & Cat's final episode is entitled #GettinWiggy and will be aired on Thursday, July 17.
