March 24, 2011

It is being reported that Comedy Central has renewed Futurama for two more cycles of 13 episodes each. With the show already slated to air new episodes this coming June, this new pickup keeps it on the air through 2013. This is surely welcome news for longtime fans of the series, which has seen its share of ups and downs over the years.

Futurama got its start on the Fox network in 1999 after being envisioned by The Simpsons creator, Matt Groening. The show aired on that network for four seasons - until being canceled in 2003. It lived on through reruns on Adult Swim and the Cartoon Network until four new straight-to-DVD films were released between 2007 and 2009. Those films eventually made it to air in the form of 16 half-hour episodes on Comedy Central, which revived the series.

Newly produced episodes began airing on Comedy Central in March 2008, and the series has found a home on that network ever since. It's not quite clear whether this new order will be considered the show's eighth and ninth seasons (the network splits seasons over two years), but regardless, fans of the show have an additional 26 episodes to look forward to on top of the new batch scheduled to air in June.

(Source: ew.com)