BET’s The Game to End After 9 Seasons + Read Mara Brock Akil’s Reaction

What a time of reflection… Spent time with my AMAZING #cast and #producers. TheGame going out on our terms after 9 seasons!! #blessed….Tonight the #cast #crew #producers #execs hugged and high-fived our announcement that this last production cycle will be our last… #TheGame

In an interview with BET, Mara opens up about the popular show’s departure. Read a few excerpts.

What made you decide that seasons eight and nine would be the last for The Game?

Shows do end; that is a part the business. I’m very happy BET gave The Game five additional seasons to explore these characters and this world. We made history when we got to the network and it’s nice to be able to celebrate the great achievements of the show.

Looking back, is there any storyline that you would have changed?

No, I don’t live in that place. I don’t regret anything that we’ve done.

What is the legacy that you hope The Game will leave behind to its audience?

I’m really proud of the look of our show, that we took a multi-cam budget and turned it into a single camera show. Its look, its tone, its approach, the characters’ development — that, yes, we were a half-hour comedy but we used our moments to deepen the characters. We also offered drama in a half-hour space. And that was my own personal desire, but it was also reflective of what the audience has been wanting, which is more well-rounded, deeper, richer, layered characters, and they got that in The Game.

What’s your favorite moment from the past four seasons?

One of my favorite moments is when we all came back on that stage together. When we premiered, all the actors and actresses were together. We sat in this audience, I think we were at the DGA theater. It was packed with a lot of our peers and our colleagues in the business. Here it was, The Game on BET, and we’re going to premiere the first episode of season four.

I also remember our last episode at the CW. It was an hour finale of Melanie and Derwin getting married and all of the possibilities. I remember thinking, “Wow, we got to do this amazing finale with all of these locations, with all of these production values, with all these great storylines, with all this drama and comedy, and we ended that reign with a bang.” And we came into BET with a bigger bang and audience. I won’t ever forget it.

What are your thoughts on The Game ending? Was it time to say goodbye? [BET]

Follow me: @theJasmineBRAND on Twitter | theJasmineBRAND on Facebook | theJasmineBRAND on Instagram