Hulu Wraps ‘Futurama’ Regular Seasons, But Three Extended Specials Are on the Horizon

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The unkillable sci-fi animated comedy Futurama has reached another major turning point. Following the release of the Season 14 finale, “Final Ending: The Last Conclusion,” Hulu confirmed that it currently has no plans to order additional traditional 10-episode seasons of Matt Groening and David X. Cohen’s iconic series.

However, the Planet Express crew isn’t heading back into cryogenic storage just yet. Rather than ending the franchise entirely, Hulu and 20th Television Animation are pivoting to a format strategy familiar to long-time fans: three extended, 66-minute “XXXL” streaming specials, with the first installment targeted for late 2027.

A Shift From TV Seasons to Event Specials

The decision marks the end of Futurama’s latest 40-episode run on Hulu, which kicked off when the platform revived the series in 2023. Rather than producing standard 22-minute television episodes, the upcoming specials will give the creative team a broader canvas to tell larger-scale, cinematic stories.

Executive producer David X. Cohen noted that the three extended specials will total about the same amount of content as a traditional season, just delivered in a feature-style presentation.

  • The Late 2027 Holiday Special: The first 66-minute movie-length event is slated for the 2027 holiday season. The plot follows Fry’s childhood Christmas dreams while featuring a romance between Bender and a snowman.

  • Tribute to Coolio: The 2027 special will also feature a formal, emotional farewell to Kwanzaa Bot following the passing of voice actor Coolio, giving the show a proper way to address the character and honor the real-life tragedy.

Groening Confident the Show “Will Rise Again”

While the end of regular season orders might sound alarming for other series, the Futurama team takes the news in stride. Having faced cancellations and revivals across Fox, Comedy Central, and now Hulu over its 27-year history, the creators remain unfazed by the show’s uncertain long-term future.

Reflecting on the show’s uncanny ability to cheat death, creator Matt Groening emphasized that the team still has plenty of stories left to tell.

“The thing about ‘Is Futurama coming to an end?’ Well, we’ve come to an end many times before. They can put us in a coffin, they can nail the lid shut, but they can’t bury us. We will rise again.”

This strategy mirrors the show’s post-Fox era in 2007, when four direct-to-DVD movies—including Bender’s Big Score—bridged the gap before Comedy Central eventually picked up the series for full regular seasons. Whether these three upcoming Hulu specials lead to another revival down the road remains to be seen, but for now, the future of 3026 stays firmly alive.