Tyra Banks’ CW talk show will cease production next spring but will live on in repeats for at least another season.
Producer Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution confirmed the news Monday after Banks announced it on her website and Twitter feeds earlier in the day.
"Tyra" shifted from first-run syndication to the CW’s daytime lineup in the fall. It also reduced its annual production schedule, downsizing from 34 weeks of originals each year to 26.
The CW currently airs a mix of original and "best of" repeats of "Tyra" between 3 and 5 p.m. Starting in fall 2010, it will air repeats only from 3 to 4 p.m.
Moving to the CW has boosted ratings for "Tyra" in some key female demographics. The show is up 20 percent among women 18-34 (1.2 rating) and 25 percent in women 18-49 (1.0) vs. last season, according to Nielsen season-to-date dat through early December.
But the show’s overall so-so ratings likely didn’t justify the CW keeping "Trya" in production for another season, making the show’s end of production predictable.
Nonetheless, Banks insisted on her website that the decision to call it quits was hers alone.
"The Tyra Show is not leaving because of YOU," Banks wrote. "Most times, a show leaves the air because not many people are watching. Well, you all ARE watching, in record numbers."
Instead, Banks said he wants "to take more exciting steps in my life," including an expansion into feature film production.
"There’s a lot cooking right now and a lot of fire burning in my heart, and for years, I’ve been working on the next big ideas and new ways to reach out to you," she said. "Besides continuing full speed with ‘America’s Next Top Model ‘(which starts its 15th season), ‘True Beauty’ (which is in its second season), and Tyra.com, this year I’ll be unveiling some HUGE surprises from me and my company Bankable — new out-of-the-box projects. And I’m incredibly excited to announce that I’ll be launching Bankable Studios soon, which means my company will be making MOVIES!!!"
Banks also used her announcement to give a random shout-out to Oprah Winfrey, skillfully managing to link the demise of "Tyra" to Winfrey’s planned exit from daytime.
"Before I go, I have to pay homage to the ultimate Queen of Talk, Oprah, who made a huge impact on my life by giving me my first shot in daytime TV," Banks wrote. "We all know she announced that her last year with her talk show will be in the 2010-2011 season. We will all miss her show so much. And to you Oprah: You have had, and continue to have, such an amazing impact on me. I salute you."
