Today we have received more news regarding Black Lightning, but this time, not as uplifting: Season 4, set to air next year, will be its last.

Black Lightning, played by Cress Williams, told the story of the Pierce family as they navigated the superhero world with their powers, as well as racial injustice. The news comes after an announcement just a few days ago that Painkiller, a character from the show, would be getting his own spin-off series, with a backdoor pilot airing during the upcoming season. Regarding the cancellation, executive producer Salim Akil posted a statement regarding the announcement:

When we first started the ‘Black Lighting’ journey, I knew that Jefferson Pierce and his family of powerful Black Women would be a unique addition to the super hero genre, [...] The love that Blerds and all comic book fans around the globe have shown this series over the past three seasons proved what we imagined, Black People Want To See Themselves in all their complexities. Thank you to the phenomenal cast, writers and crew without whom none of this would’ve been possible, I’m incredibly proud of the work we’ve been able to do and the moments we’ve been able to create in bringing DC’s first African-American family of super heroes to life for the culture. I’m very grateful to Peter Roth, Warner Bros. TV, Mark Pedowitz, The CW Network and Greg Berlanti for their partnership and support of my vision at every step of this journey. While Season Four may be the end of one journey, I’m extremely excited to usher in a new chapter and continued collaboration with The CW as we tell the story of Painkiller.

While it's certainly sad to see Black Lightning come to an end, particularly after such a short run in comparison to the other CW shows, we will hope that the Pierce family will get to live on and make appearances in Painkiller. Let us know your thoughts below and in our forum! Don't forget to follow us on Twitter for breaking news!