‘Divergent’ series finale ‘Ascendant’ ends up on the small screen -- reports

The final installment for the Divergent Series: “Ascendant" is not making it to the theatres and will instead be shown on the small screen. Lionsgate is reportedly reconfiguring the project into a TV movie and will then continue as a spinoff series instead.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, "Ascendant" was originally slated to begin filming in Atlanta this summer. It was set to be released in June 2017 to go against "World War Z 2" and a reboot of "The Mummy." However, "Allegiant" did not perform well, so Lionsgate had to slash the funds for the final film.

The first two installments of the series, “Divergent” and “Insurgent,” were box office hits. The consecutive success had relatively influenced the decision to divide "Allegiant" into two parts. After all, "Harry Potter," "Twilight" and "Hunger Games" did it, and the move successfully delivered more sales. Unfortunately, “Allegiant” didn’t do so well resulting to its second part discarded into the small screen.

The reason for the loss of “Allegiant” is unclear, but it is noted that the movie veered drastically from the book. In the movie adaptation, Tris (Shailene Woodley) does not die. The character lives on and the plotline continues in "Ascendant." Whether "Allegiant’s" flop resulted for not faithfully going by the book or maybe viewers have simply moved on to other genres, the end result for “Ascendant” is the small screen.

The Divergent Series is based on a trilogy by author Veronica Roth. As fiction for the young adults, the story is set in a post-apocalyptic society where people are divided into factions based on their personalities. Shailene Woodley plays the main protagonist, Beatrice “Tris” Prior, opposite Theo James, who plays Tobias Eaton. Reports say it is unclear on whether the actors will star in “Ascendant,” what with the new set-up.

Lionsgate's television group will handle the production of the spinoff series. Currently, the plan for “Ascendant” is to wrap up the storyline in a TV movie and then segue it to a standalone television series. No official statement from Lionsgate has been made yet.