ABC Family canceled The Lying Game after two seasons mainly because its ratings were modest and never reached the hit level the network wanted, especially compared with Pretty Little Liars and other stronger performers on the same channel.

Quick Scoop

What officially happened

  • The show ended after Season 2 with no Season 3 pickup, confirmed by star Alexandra Chando in a message to fans on Instagram, where she thanked viewers and said ABC Family decided not to bring the series back.
  • ABC Family then confirmed they would not move forward with additional episodes, meaning the story would stay unresolved on that cliffhanger.

Why it was canceled (real-world reasons)

Networks rarely give a juicy, detailed explanation, but industry coverage around that time makes the picture pretty clear:

  • Modest ratings: Articles noted that The Lying Game was “on the bubble” and had “modestly rated runs,” which is industry-speak for “not a disaster, but not strong enough to justify renewal.”
  • Competition inside the same network: It launched a year after Pretty Little Liars , another Sara Shepard adaptation, which became a much bigger hit and set a high bar for similar teen mystery dramas.
  • Business priorities: When a show costs more to make than the audience can justify, networks usually shift budget toward fresher pilots or stronger brands; coverage grouped The Lying Game with other on‑the-bubble shows like Bunheads that also had modest ratings.

In other words, it wasn’t canceled because of scandal or controversy; it was a business and ratings decision.

Why it felt so abrupt to fans

  • The finale aired in March 2013 and pulled about 1.11 million viewers, which is decent but not breakout for a cable teen drama.
  • The story ended on a big mystery cliffhanger, so when cancellation came in July, many fans felt like the rug was pulled out from under them with no closure for the twins or the larger conspiracy.
  • Forum threads and fan discussions years later still talk about the show as one that “deserved better” and wonder why it didn’t get the same long run as Pretty Little Liars.

How people talk about it now (forum-style vibe)

“The Lying Game, another mystery series by Sara Shepard, only ran for two seasons and concluded on an unresolved cliffhanger.”

Common points fans bring up in discussions:

  1. It had a strong premise (twins swapping lives, family secrets) but never quite got the same marketing push or buzz as Pretty Little Liars.
  1. Some viewers felt the mystery took too long to pay off, which might have hurt week‑to‑week engagement.
  1. Others think ABC Family simply didn’t want two very similar mystery shows based on Shepard novels on the air long-term, and backed the bigger hit instead.

Is there any “latest news” or revival talk?

  • Since the official cancellation announcement in 2013, there has been no confirmed revival, reboot, or continuation of the TV storyline from ABC Family/Freeform.
  • Fans still occasionally bring it up alongside other “gone too soon” shows like Twisted in Reddit and forum posts, but that’s more nostalgia and wishful thinking than real development news.

TL;DR: They canceled The Lying Game because its ratings were only okay, not great, especially next to bigger hits like Pretty Little Liars , so ABC Family decided not to invest in a third season even though the story wasn’t finished.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.