Paramount Cancels DORA And 2D-Animated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles On Nickelodeon

The upcoming seasons of Nickelodeon's CG-animated DORA and 2D-animated Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will be their last.

Season two of Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles premieres on Paramount+ in December and will run on Nicktoons next year. Produced by Nickelodeon Animation and Point Grey Pictures, the series bridges the gap between Nickelodeon Movies and Paramount Pictures' blockbuster TMNT movie, Mutant Mayhem, and it's upcoming sequel, currently slated for release in 2027. The franchise is expected to continue with IDW's TMNT comics.

The debut of Dora‘s fourth season on the streamer was originally slated for the fourth quarter of this year, but is now TBD. It too will be followed by a linear window on Nick Jr. A fifth and final season of Dora also has been produced; its fate is unclear. A reimagining of Nickelodeon's iconic Latina heroine, the series is produced by Nickelodeon Animation, with the show's cancellation coming as the franchise is celebrating its 25th anniversary.

Paramount is actively exploring third-party licensing opportunities for both series, something the company has been doing consistently for a number of years, with a number of Nickelodeon titles available on Netflix, for example.

The cancellation decisions come on the heels of the post Paramount-Skydance merger restructuring. In it, all Paramount linear networks, including Nickelodeon, as well as the Nickelodeon Animation Studios, which produces the majority of the Nick animated shows, including Dora and Ninja Turtles, were consolidated into a TV Media division overseen by Chair George Cheeks.

In a memo last week announcing TV Media’s executive structure, Cheeks hinted at a slimming down the current roster of cable series.

“Our cable brands will focus on a more curated slate, optimizing programming and marketing resources to amplify what resonates most,” he said. “That means leaning into franchises like SpongeBob, PAW Patrol, RuPaul’s Drag Race, South Park, Ms. Pat and The Daily Show, while continuing to develop new IP across our studios and seeking new ways to amplify and connect with audiences.”

Not surprisingly, Nick’s flagship franchises, SpongeBob SquarePants and PAW Patrol, made the list of priority linear brands. Neither Dora nor Ninja Turtles did but both have a long history at the network and may be revisited in the future with new iterations.

The Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cancellation was first reported by The InSneider.

Sky New Zealand Launches Two New Channels To Replace Paramount's Offering And Cartoon Network

Sky New Zealand is launching two new self-branded channels to replace Paramount’s Nickelodeon, Nick Jr, Comedy Central and Cartoon Network, which are ceasing transmission from early December.

The new offerings, Sky Comedy and Sky Kids, will carry programming from the expiring channels in addition to new shows from a range of studios and locally commissioned content.

“Kids and comedy programming are at the heart of Sky’s entertainment offering. By bringing these important channels ‘in-house’ we can choose and curate the content that we know our customers enjoy and engage with, combining Paramount fan favourites with content from other studios,” said Fiona Murray, Sky NZ’s head of entertainment.

Sky Comedy will feature Comedy Central content including the final season of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, South Park, The Daily Show and Beavis & Butt-Head, in addition to retro classics including Cheers, Reno 911!, Nathan For You and Key & Peele.

Sky Kids is being pitched as offering educational programming for preschoolers through to primary school-age children. Former Nickelodeon and Nick Jr content will be included alongside “a strong slate of local programming.”

The new outlet will complement the existing CBeebies channel, providing local content including Katie’s Kuri and The Last Moa, as well as multiple seasons of home-grown hits such as Kiri & Lou, The Drawing Show, Extreme Cake Sports and Secrets at Red Rocks.

Sky NZ said some content from the axed channels will continue to be available via on-demand on the new Sky Experience service across the Sky Box and Sky Pod platforms. Cartoon Network content will continue to be available on-demand through the HBO Max hub via the Sky Entertainment package.

The broadcaster has also partnered with Mood TV to bring two new local music channels to its channel line-up, Juice TV and J2, which effectively replace MTV Hits and MTV 80s. In line with the global shutdown of the MTV brand, the music channels will no longer be available via linear in New Zealand.

In October, it was announced that MTV linear channels would progressively shut down in the UK, Poland, France and Brazil. In Australia, the MTV brand has suffered a similar fate, with its channels having been shut down weeks ago by OTT provider Fetch TV. Paramount owned Australian channels MTV 80s, MTV 90s, MTV 00s, MTV Club and MTV Hits which were previously carried by Foxtel in a deal that was not renewed.

All changes to Sky NZ programming take effect from December 2.

New Channel Alert: MultiChoice Rwanda And Zacu Entertainment Bring Kinyarwanda Content To More DStv Customers

Following the expansion of Africa Magic Hausa, Africa Magic Igbo, Maisha Magic East and Maisha Magic Plus to Canal+ Afrique. MultiChoice will be adding Canal+ Afrique's Zacu TV to the DStv platform.

This comes after MultiChoice had been acquired by Canal+ with a full integration underway within the next 12-18 months. 

Zacu Entertainment (also known as ZACU TV) stands as a trailblazing content production and distribution powerhouse, strategically headquarted in Rwanda. Established in 2017 and subsequently acquired by the distringuished CANAL+ Group in 2022, Zacu has gained an exemplary reputation for entrancing audiences with an impressive array of critically acclaimed TV series, which includes Seburikoko, City Maid, Indoto, Ejo Si Kera, The Bishop’s Family, and Ishusho ya Papa. 

It has contributed over 1000 episodes to the esteemed National Television networdk RBA, cementing our role as a significant contributor to the industry. With a diverse library spanning 800 hours of captivating local short and feature films that encompasass rich tapestry of genres, from compelling drama to heartwarming romance and side-splitting comedy. 

MultiChoice is currently running an upsize promotion for various DStv consumers until the end of December. Those paying DStv Access will be automatically be upgraded to DStv Compact while those on the mentioned package upgrade to DStv Premium.

eToonz Has Been Licensing Content From Former DStv Channel

MultiChoice had lost a total of 11 TV channels in the previous financial year namely Emmanuel TV, M-Net's Me and 1Magic and B4U Movies. Amidst this, the company was part of a takeover procedure by Canal+ which had concluded not long ago.

PBS Kids is an educational brand operated by Public Broadcasting System which offered content for viewers aged 4 to 9. The channel formed part of the various cuts at MultiChoice with shows suddenly appearing on eToonz.

eToonz is only licensed to consumers in South Africa and operated by eMedia Investments. Following PBS Kids' closure, various shows from the brand to have now been seen in the region include WordWorld, Let's Go Luna and Pinkalicious & Peterrific.

PBS Kids was accessible to the same as eToonz being DStv Easyview so consumers aren't necessarily missing out on much. Unlike those residing outside of the region who would need to access the latter on Showmax or on YouTube.

But the reality is that eToonz is not PBS Kids as they offer lesser content from the brand. The same can be said about Universal TV and Bravo after MultiChoice opted to axe 1Magic and Me consumers on those packages can't see shows like America's Got Talent or Yellowstone.

Companies like MultiChoice believe that by merging channels or not replacing removed ones would ensure an enhanced viewing experience. When consumers would have to pay the same amount for even less and opt to find alternatives alongside cancelling their subscription.

Could Nicktoons And Nick Jr. (Ethiopia) Also Be At Risk Of Exiting DStv?

Paramount is in the process of shutting down some of its linear operations in Europe and Africa by the end of 2025. This includes music brands like MTV Base alongside the black focused entertainment channel, BET both of are seen on MultiChoice's DStv.

Many insiders do warn that the cuts go beyond channel terminations but content as well. A while ago, MTV had cancelled their longest running shows Ridiculousness and Catfish: The TV Show followed by Beyond Bragga and Black Gold on BET.

For Nicktoons, Nick In Your Language has offered various shows in local languages including Paw Patrol, SpongeBob Squarepants and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. They also offer a musical program NickMusic which had been produced in the same production house as MTV Base.

From 2026, there's a very high possibility that alongside MTV Base and BET that these local projects on Nicktoons will be axed. 

Paramount sent a memo in July 2025 warning staff that local projects would be axed and their offices shut down. In Portugal, various channels from the company including Nickelodeon are expected to close by December 2025.

MultiChoice has seen a drop in subscriptions for their pay-tv service and following its buyout by Canal+. I'd imagine they're going to make cuts to their platform especially in markets like Ethiopia.

Canal+ had shut down its services in the region following its rollout in 2021 as they reported weak growth. MultiChoice is losing subscribers especially in Kenya and Nigeria which serve as major markets for DStv and Ethiopia is most definitely not exempt from these cuts.

MultiChoice had launched an Amharic version to Nick Jr. which very much like Nick In Your Language but as a standalone channel dubs various preschool shows. With Paramount shuttering it's offices in Africa there's no way Nick Jr. can operate independently.

Aside from BET and MTV Base, it's likely that Nick Jr. would be shutting down its localised feed in Ethiopia leaving the Pan-African feed intact. Nicktoons continues to be carried in some European markets so it's likely the one in Africa will just aligned to those markets as seen with Nickelodeon.