"Switched at Birth" season 5 will be the last of the teen-family drama. "Switched at Birth" creator Lizzy Weiss was the one to bear the bad news on Twitter. She was, however, thankful and proud of what show has accomplished.
"This season of 'Switched at Birth' will be our final one. We are ending the show after an amazing 103 episodes with pride, love, and gratitude," Weiss tweeted out.
Thank you for letting me know what the show has meant to you over the years. I'm very touched. We accomplished a lot with this little show.
— Lizzy Weiss (@Lizzy_Weiss) March 13, 2016 " data-caption="null" data-credit="null">This season of #SwitchedatBirth will be our final one. We are ending the show after an amazing 103 episodes with pride, love, and gratitude.
— Lizzy Weiss (@Lizzy_Weiss) March 12, 2016 " data-caption="null" data-credit="null">The critically acclaimed Freeform drama, which even won the prestigious honorary Peabody Award back in 2013, was renewed for season 5 last year mere days before the fourth season aired its finale.
The early renewal was taken to indicate that more stories from Daphne and Bay's life will be told beyond "Switched at Birth" season 5 and that the show was doing well in both the viewership and ratings department.
Over the years, the number of "Switched at Birth" viewers consistently declined, according to the data presented by TV Series Finale. The season 4-ender only had around 840,000 fans watching. When it premiered back in 2011, 3.30million viewers tuned in.
"Switched at Birth" is loved most especially for the variety of relatable and relevant issues it embarks upon. In fact, this was the very reason why Freeform chose to renew it for season 5 last year.
Freeform Executive Vice President of Programming and Development Karey Burke said back then that the show continues to churn out "fresh, relatable storylines that tackle important social issues, reflecting what our audience experiences daily."
It will continue to do so, with a "Switched at Birth" season 5 episode set to focus on the racism that happens on college campuses through the eyes of African-American students, who felt offended by a white student dressing as rapper Lil Wayne in a party.
In the show's previous seasons, it had episodes featuring a Down Syndrome pregnancy and even had an installment entirely done in sign language.
"Switched at Birth" season 5 is set to air the first of its last 10 episodes this summer. The series will end with a 90-minute special.
