‘Orange Is The New Black’ Canceled? Hoax Goes Viral

Rumors of the death of “Orange Is The New Black” have been greatly exaggerated. Empire News reported the show had been canceled and the article went viral. However, Empire News’ “About/Disclaimer” page states, “Empire News is a satirical and entertainment website.” It was all a joke!

So what tipped off readers who didn’t buy into the hoax? First of all, the show was already renewed for Season 3. The article’s reasons behind cancelation are also laughable.

The article stated: “According to inside sources, a private feud between Netflix co-founder Hastings and show creator Jenji Kohan came to a head after Hastings insisted to Kohan that there be more male leads in the show.” Male leads on a show about a women’s prison? That doesn’t really make sense.

The article goes on to say that Kohan didn’t want to stray from the book on which the show is based, “Orange Is The New Black: My Year In A Women’s Prison.” Fans who have read the book know the show has already significantly strayed from the source material.

That wasn’t the end of the issue. Empire News even created a few quotes from Netflix CEO Reed Hastings. The article read, “'A woman’s place is in the home, in the kitchen, taking care of children.’ Hastings told San Jose Mercury News reporter Noah Houpt as he was leaving Netflix headquarters Monday afternoon.”

Aside from the politically incorrect sexism from a corporate figure in the quote, the attribution isn’t even close to real. Noah Houpt cannot be found on the San Jose Mercury News’ website. Also, if this had been reported Monday, Empire News wouldn’t have hung onto it until Saturday. Every major news outlet would have reported it before the weekend.

The quotes didn’t stop there though. Hastings was also quoted as saying, “A woman in jail? How does anyone even watch this show in the first place? It’s like we took everything bad about ‘OZ,’ and make this show with the leftovers.”

It's unlikely the CEO would bash one of the website’s most popular shows in such a horribly unprofessional manner.

Netflix has yet to release a statement on the hoax, but it did tweet this:

Were you fooled by the hoax? Are you relieved that the women of Litchfield will return? Sound off in the comments!