The Miami-set crime drama from “Ozark” co-creator Bill Dubuque will not return for a second season despite generating early buzz.
Peacock has canceled the crime drama “M.I.A.” after just one season, the streamer confirmed. The series, created, written, and executive produced by Bill Dubuque, premiered May 7 with all nine hour-long episodes released at once.
The show generated real momentum out of the gate. NBC gave it an extra push with a special broadcast airing on May 14, and it stood out as one of the few series both set in and actually filmed in Miami. The specific reasoning behind Peacock’s decision not to renew has not been made public.
“M.I.A.” followed Etta Tiger Jonze (Shannon Gisela), a 21-year-old living in the Florida Keys who discovers her family’s tourist marina business is a front for a drug-running operation tied to the Rojas cartel. After a brutal cartel ambush kills her entire immediate family, Etta escapes to Miami, where, guided by motel owner Lena (Tovah Feldshuh) and joined by friends Lovely and Stanley, she sets out on a mission to infiltrate the cartel and eliminate the twelve men responsible for the massacre.
The season finale left the story on a significant cliffhanger. The Rojas brothers complete a violent internal takeover of the cartel, poisoning rival Pedro and his wife, while their sister, Caroline Carver (Marta Milans), announces a run for political office. In the same episode, Etta’s aunt Carmen (Danay Garcia), revealed to be her late mother’s identical twin, survives a brutal fight with cartel enforcer Elias (Alberto Guerra). The finale’s biggest twist came in its closing scene: Etta, who had been building a romantic relationship with a man named Matt (Tyler Pérez), is left stunned when his mother turns out to be Caroline Carver, one of the very cartel figures Etta has sworn to kill. With the cancellation, that cliffhanger, Etta face to face with her target while dating her son, will go unresolved.
The cast also included Brittany Adebumola, Loretta Devine, Dylan Jackson, Cary Elwes, Alberto Guerra, Maurice Compte, Gerardo Celasco, and Marta Milans.
Karen Campbell served as showrunner and executive producer, also writing episode 102. Alethea Jones directed the first two episodes and executive produced; additional directors included Gwyneth Horder-Payton, Marizee Almas, Ben Semanoff, and John Dahl.
MRC produced the series, with Paramount Global Content Distribution handling distribution.