Why is it so hard to do religion in prime time?

< Previous Page

"Sister Wives" and HBO’s polygamy drama "Big Love" excelled because they looked at a marginalized religious group whose fringe practices wouldn’t challenge the majority’s beliefs.

Going forward, especially if "GCB" is canceled, Hoover suspects there could be a downturn in shows with religious themes "if the industry sees these as examples of what happens when you do religion."

Mosallam is undeterred, saying "All-American Muslim," though a ratings dud, still raised awareness and paved the way for more shows about Muslims in the future.

But for his part, Kenny said he will never create a show exploring religion again.

"You have to be a hit out of the box, within three episodes, or you’re canceled," he said. "There are all these hurdles that are so enormous, why would you want to put in front of it this hurdle of overcoming religious controversy?"

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

About Reader Comments

---

Reader comments on sltrib.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Salt Lake Tribune. We will delete comments containing obscenities, personal attacks and inappropriate or offensive remarks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. If you see an objectionable comment, please alert us by clicking the arrow on the upper right side of the comment and selecting "Flag comment as inappropriate". If you've recently registered with Disqus or aren't seeing your comments immediately, you may need to verify your email address. To do so, visit disqus.com/account.
See more about comments here.