Hulu has canceled “Deli Boys” after two seasons, ending the run of a crime comedy that drew strong critical praise but never built the audience needed to justify a third installment. The Onyx Collective series, which averaged a 98% approval rating from critics across both seasons on Rotten Tomatoes, concluded its second season in May.
The show followed brothers Mir and Raj Dar, played by Asif Ali and Saagar Shaikh, whose comfortable lives unravel after their father’s sudden death reveals he ran a criminal empire behind his chain of convenience stores. Poorna Jagannathan starred alongside them as Naveeda, known as Lucky, their father’s confidant and a crime boss in her own right. The series was notable for centering South Asian characters both on screen and behind the camera, with creator Abdullah Saeed and the three lead actors all of South Asian descent, a combination still uncommon in American television.
Onyx Collective had treated the show as a priority property, pushing for cast expansion after its first season to help broaden its viewership. That effort brought “Saturday Night Live” veteran Fred Armisen aboard as a series regular for season two, playing Max Sugar, a casino magnate and money launderer who becomes entangled with the Dar family’s operation.
The second season also added Andrew Rannells in a recurring role, along with guest appearances from Kumail Nanjiani, Lilly Singh, Robin Thede and Tan France. Despite the additions, the show never cracked Nielsen’s top 10 streaming rankings, and Hulu does not regularly disclose viewership figures for its original programming.
The season two finale left the story on a cliffhanger, with the Dar brothers and Lucky prevailing over their immediate rivals only to receive a warning from an unidentified sibling claiming a share of their late father’s fortune. Ali joked during a Variety interview that the mystery relative could be played by Robert Downey Jr., referencing the actor’s role as Doctor Doom in Marvel’s upcoming “Avengers: Doomsday,” though no such crossover is planned.
“Deli Boys” was produced by Onyx Collective and 20th Television, with Michelle Nader serving as showrunner. Both seasons remain available to stream on Hulu.
