Why was Gold Rush: The Dirt canceled? Christo Doyle responds

Gold Rush Executive Producer Christo Doyle announced this week that the popular Gold Rush after show The Dirt has been canceled.

“After 9 seasons, The Dirt is not coming back,” host Christo wrote in a statement shared on his social media platforms. “Working on Gold Rush has been a highlight but it’s finally time to stop talking about sluice boxes & glory holes.”

Christo concluded the announcement by expressing his gratitude. “Special thanks to the loyal Discovery viewers, to @RawTVLtd for ground breaking work & to the miners for putting up w/ me for so long.”

After 9 seasons, The Dirt is not coming back. Working on @Gold_Rush has been a highlight but it's finally time to stop talking sluice boxes & glory holes. Special thanks to the @Discovery viewers, @RawTVLtd for ground breaking work & to the miners for putting up w/ me for so long pic.twitter.com/J5koihgmYa

— Christo Doyle (@ChristoDoyle) June 13, 2023

The appreciation continued with an additional message on Facebook. “Thanks for years of loyalty everyone,” Christo wrote. “It was a pleasure to give you all a BTS view into the Gold Rush world. The show is a success because of you all. Thank you.”

Gold Rush continues to be a ratings success for Discovery, and The Dirt was a wonderful supplement to the series. In addition to grilling the miners in studio interviews, Christo would travel to the actual mining claims to get “the dirt” on all the mining drama straight from the source.

The story lines for the miners on Gold Rush are inevitably heavily edited, or perhaps it would be better to say that the story lines are run through a wash plant before airing.

The Dirt did a wonderful job of living up to its title and showing fans an unwashed, dirtier glimpse at what was really going on. The show helped provide depth for Gold Rush fans wanting a fuller picture of what the miners were actually going through each season.

Why was Gold Rush: The Dirt canceled?

Christo Doyle is great about interacting with his followers on social media when they have questions or concerns, and (of course) his announcement that The Dirt was not coming back was no exception.

In regards to why The Dirt was canceled, Christo revealed that it was largely due to industry-wide cost trimming. “Things are shrinking the in cable TV world much faster than expected,” he wrote on Facebook. “Budgets across the board are tightening. Sad but true.”

A Twitter user who was upset about the cancelation news directed his frustration at The Dirt production company Raw. Christo was quick to correct that narrative. “This has nothing to do with
@RawTVLtd,” he tweeted.

In another comment, Christo revealed The Dirt will likely not be the only casualty for the network. “Discovery is cutting a lot of shows,” he wrote.

Uh oh. Is Gold Rush at risk of being canceled? A Facebook commenter asked Christo if the orgiinal series was going to continue. “As far as I know,” Christo replied.

What’s next for Christo Doyle?

After sharing the announcement about the demise of The Dirt, Christo fielded questions about what’s next for him. One Facebook commenter even suggested that he join Gold Rush with his own mining crew! “Have always said that is a Jump the Shark moment,” Christo responded.

With no hope of following in the footsteps of legendary gold miner Todd Hoffman™, what is left for Mr. Doyle? “I am developing several new show ideas,” he revealed on Facebook. “Hope to be able to announce one soon.”

In addition to the new TV shows, Christo is also considering other ventures on other platforms. “I have been thinking about getting into podcasting to talk TV,” he added in another Facebook comment. “Not just Gold Rush but other Discovery and non-Discovery content. Maybe even film it for YouTube. Good idea?”

Personally, I’m still hoping for a Christo Doyle-hosted podcast/show about the Washington Football Team! For the past 30 years the team has been run about like some of the less successful Gold Rush crews, so it will be somewhat familiar ground for Christo.

Count me in. @1067theFan ? @nbcwashington ? https://t.co/xcjW4HdyzK

— Christo Doyle (@ChristoDoyle) March 14, 2023

In all seriousness, I’m sad to see The Dirt go. I will give Christo the final say here with one of his tweets about the announcement:

It all started because there was so much going on behind the scenes between me and the miners. Never thought it’d go 9 seasons but it was a fun ride. https://t.co/QMNeNYgYoG

— Christo Doyle (@ChristoDoyle) June 14, 2023

🫡

Asa Hawks is a writer and editor for Starcasm. You can contact Asa via Twitter, Facebook, or email at starcasmtips(at)yahoo.com