Madame Secretary is the American political drama television series that follows a former CIA analyst and political science professor who becomes the United States Secretary of State. It explores the personal and professional life of Téa Leoni in the lead role playing the role of Elizabeth McCord, as she drives international diplomacy, wrangles office politics, and balances a complex family life. The show was titled Madam President for its final season.
The show received generally positive reviews and ran for six seasons. The series was created by Barbara Hall with Morgan Freeman and Lori McCreary as executive producers. The show came to an end after the 10-episode final season despite being well received by viewers and critics.
When the show was canceled, many fans were disappointed. They believed there was still a lot of potential to be able to explore the political landscape from McCord’s point of view. When CBS pulled the plug on the show, it was addressed directly as the reality that comes with a role revolving around a political character. Just as in the world of politics in real life, when it comes to the role played by Leoni, it is inevitable that the person vacates their post. As per Looper, the showrunners acknowledged that there were only going to be so many seasons of Madame Secretary.
“We’ve always been about pulling back the curtain on the State Department and showing the process of diplomacy, so this is going to be pulling back the curtain on a campaign and everything that involves,” Hall told TV Line of the final season. Many fans are even hoping for a spin-off series of Madame President. But it will probably not happen. “If the name of the show had been Madam President, I wouldn’t have been interested,” Leoni stated. “The president decides between options that other guys bring; I wanted to be the person bringing the options. Being secretary of state was a fantastic way to show the negotiations and compromises and, most of all, the humanity behind those decisions. President is just a little too generic for my liking.”
And maybe a Madame President spin-off may not be fruitful because another reason for the show’s cancelation was a steep decline in viewership. During the first season, the show had around 14 million viewers. But by the final season, the viewership had come down to only six million. But the show provided relevant insight into the world of American politics and for that Leoni says she is “proud that we’ve offered some inspiration and hope.”