HBO Cancels 'Luck' After Third Horse Dies

No doubt HBO execs thought they had a winner on their hands when they aired the sleek, stylized horseracing drama, Luck. But after three horses died during production, the network has decided to pull the plug on the show.

The first two horses were injured during race scenes in the Dustin Hoffman, Nick Nolte drama and had to be euthanized. The third horse was injured while filming the second episode of season 2. While being walked back to her stall, she reared up and hit her head, which led to the on-set vet's decision to put her down, too.

"It is with heartbreak that executive producers David Milch and Michael Mann together with HBO have decided to cease all future production on the series Luck," HBO said a press release. "Safety is always of paramount concern. We maintained the highest safety standards throughout production, higher in fact than any protocols existing in horseracing anywhere with many fewer incidents than occur in racing or than befall horses normally in barns at night or pastures.  While we maintained the highest safety standards possible, accidents unfortunately happen and it is impossible to guarantee they won’t in the future." 

This is a big win for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which had qualms with the show from the beginning. "Knowing that old, unfit, and drugged horses were forced to race for this series, PETA is glad that HBO has finally decided to cancel the show," PETA said in a statement. The animal rights organization also confirmed that it had long been calling on HBO to use stock-racing footage instead of endangering horses for entertainment purposes.

But the last horse's death demonstrates the risks posed by the horse racing sport in and of itself. The third horse wasn't being filmed when it reared, after all. "Unfortunately, we see several of these injuries in the stable area every year," said Dr. Rick Arthur, a vet with the California Horse Racing Board. "They are more common than people realize."

TV industry insiders are naturally pointing out that Luck wasn't so fortunate in the ratings, either. If the numbers had been bigger than an average half a million viewers per episode, maybe HBO would have been more willing to stand up to the animal rights organizations. Whatever the reason may be, PETA happily won this battle.

Ironically, Luck did a wonderful job of pointing out the beauty and greatness of horses, even while it was (arguably) putting them at risk. Click here to see a tender moment between Dustin Hoffman's character, Ace Bernstein, and an ailing racehorse. We can only hope that this fiasco will bring more awareness to horseracing and will lead to the protection of these beautiful beasts.

Source: http://www.ivillage.com/hbo-cancels-luck-after-third-horse-dies/1-a-435568

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