HBO Max has cancelled “Duster,” the 1970s-set crime drama co-created by J.J. Abrams and LaToya Morgan, after a single eight-episode season. The decision was announced on 9 July, just days after the season finale debuted on the streaming platform. Produced by Abrams’ Bad Robot and Warner Bros. Television, the series starred Josh Holloway as a getaway driver recruited by the FBI’s first Black female agent, played by Rachel Hilson, to dismantle a Southwest crime syndicate. Though “Duster” earned strong reviews — scoring 92 percent with critics and 83 percent with audiences on Rotten Tomatoes — it struggled to break into Nielsen’s Top 10 for streaming originals. HBO Max said it was “tremendously proud” of the show but would “not be moving forward with a second season,” while Warner Bros. Television praised the “thrilling, multi-dimensional” storytelling. Industry sources said the producers quietly shopped the series to other outlets without success after cast options lapsed. The cancellation ends a project first ordered in April 2020 and developed over five years.