15 Popular TV Shows That Lost Their Relevance

Jake Valentine

June 9, 2025

No king rules forever, and that includes the world of television.

Just because a TV show was once popular, that doesn’t mean it’ll remain relevant in the world of pop culture. Obviously, there are exceptions to this rule. Seinfeld, Breaking Bad, and The Sopranos still rule the world.

These shows, however, failed to stand the test of time.

Who Wants to Be A Millionaire?

The popular game show, hosted by the great Regis Philbin, dominated the Nielsen ratings like no other game show had.

It was prime time appointment viewing to see who could take home a million dollars. I remember sitting with my family in the living room and watching it as often as possible.

Of course, over time, even the most popular game shows lost their popularity, and now Millionaire is an afterthought in pop culture.

American Idol

While American Idol still airs today, it’s nowhere near peak popularity.

Even I, who couldn’t care less who won the show, tuned in during the original judging portions. The trio of Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell was appointment television.

Ally McBeal

My parents loved Ally McBeal, and it was arguably David E. Kelley’s most successful series.

You can argue that The Practice falls into this category, too. It was must-see television in the 1990s that rarely gets talked about today.

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Murphy Brown

Murphy Brown was a ratings winner during its original run, thanks to its topical humor.

The problem with that, however, is that when you’re constantly discussing current events in the late 1980s and early 1990s, you can’t expect to find an evergreen audience.

Mad About You

When you think about NBC’s “Must See TV” lineup, chances are you will think of Seinfeld, Cheers, and Friends.

One show you may have forgotten about is Mad About You. It outperformed modern classics like Parks and Recreation, but that didn’t translate to long-term popularity.

Nip/Tuck

The FX series is very much a product of its time, showcasing the very best of what cable television could offer in the early 2000s.

However, as time has gone on, its edgy humor and drama have become more cringeworthy than anything else.

The Shield

One FX series that should have maintained a chokehold on pop culture relevancy is The Shield.

It remains one of the best police dramas in television history and was a groundbreaking cable series, but it has inexplicably become less popular over time.

Tiger King

Talk about being at the right place at the right time.

I’m convinced that if it weren’t for the COVID-19 Pandemic, no one would have cared about Tiger King, Joe Exotic, or Carole Baskins.

L.A. Law

Eight Seasons. 172 episodes. 15 Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Drama Series four times. Do you know how I, a millennial, found out that L.A. Law existed? Corbin Bernsen’s appearance on Seinfeld.

I don’t know what caused L.A. Law to lose its relevance, but man, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone under 30 who knows anything about this show.

House of Cards

Netflix burst onto the original programming scene with House of Cards. The first two seasons offer some of the best political drama I’ve ever watched.

Then it kept going. And going. Straight into a world of “we no longer care about this show.”

Even before Kevin Spacey unceremoniously left the show, it had lost its relevancy.

The Tonight Show

To be honest, late-night programming has been on a downward spiral thanks to the rise of YouTube and social media. We no longer have to hear talk show hosts chit-chat with celebrities; we can go straight to the source.

Of course, a good late-night host is able to overcome these hurdles, and that’s arguably the problem with the current crop. There’s certainly no Johnny Carson, and Conan O’Brien knew to leave the industry and move on to something else, where he’s seen sustained success.

Desperate Housewives

After debuting in 2004, Desperate Housewives was everywhere. It was the talk of the town, and there was so much cross-promotional advertising.

Who could ever forget the Monday Night Football spot with Terrell Owens and Nicollette Sheridan?

Game of Thrones

Yes, there is still the House of Dragon spin-off happening, among others, but man, is there any show that had a fall off as big as Game of Thrones?

It used to be the television show to watch, but now, it’s been tainted due to how bad the final seasons were.

The Walking Dead

Speaking of poor final seasons, The Walking Dead was the other must watch show that aired on Sunday nights in the 2010s.

Like Game of Thrones, the longer it went on, the more it turned people off. What was once a cultural phenomenon is slowly but surely becoming lost to time.