Boring spin-off or legendary comeback – Will America’s Backyard Gold get renewed?

America’s Backyard Gold has not been a rousing success so far, but it might be too soon for the show to get cancelled.

Dave Turin, better known as ‘Dozer Dave’ within the Gold Rush fandom, has not always had the best luck when it comes to reality television.

In fact, the reality star has even admitted that after he left Warner Bros. Discovery’s incredibly successful Gold Rush show, he pitched two separate shows to the network, both of which were not picked up.

And of course, his solo-series, Gold Rush: Dave Turin’s Lost Mine ended on a rather somber note just four seasons in.

Does America’s Backyard Gold have the “it” factor?

Now, the so-called Gold Rush “legend” is back with a brand new show called America’s Backyard Gold.

This show promises to leave behind the drama and high stakes that Gold Rush is known for, and instead, focuses on weekend warriors looking to strike it big right in their own backyards.

And, while new shows often need a few seasons to find their television feet – it looks like America’s Backyard Gold may already be finding itself in a slump just a few episodes in.

A brief summary of America’s Backyard Gold season 1

Before we get into America’s Backyard Gold’s future, it may be useful to examine the show’s present state. The first season of America’s Backyard Gold can be summarized as follows:

The competition is fierce

While America’s Backyard Gold has been trying to find its feet, Warner Bros. Discovery (the network behind it all) has been going from strength to strength in the first quarter of 2024.

By the first week of April 2024, Warner Bros. Discovery had a more than 50 percent share of primetime cable viewership (of adults aged 18-49) for five nights.

This means that the United States branch of this network, accounted for the entertainment of about one third of all primetime cable-watching adults.

And while having access to Warner Bros. Discovery’s more than 142 million total viewers may sound like a good thing – it also means that America’s Backyard Gold will have to fight tooth and nail to prove that it deserves a spot next season (as will every other show on the network).

This is especially true for shows airing on the Discovery Channel, which was ranked as the third-most popular non-news and sports cable network among men.

The reviews are mixed

There is a group of die-hard Dave Turin fans who really seem to appreciate the laid-back approach of America’s Backyard Gold.

However, there is also a group of die-hard Gold Rush fans who feel that America’s Backyard Gold lacks any and all of the dramatic breakdowns, looming debt, and huge returns which make the original Gold Rush (and the better spin-offs from the franchise) so entertaining.

In fact, of the four reviews for the show on IMDb, three reviewers gave the show a less-than 5-star rating, with one reviewer simply dubbing it “Stupid, Fake, Scripted – Pure Garbage. Very disappointing!”

And though America’s Backyard Gold has not been airing long enough for its reviews, or its rather poor 6.8 out of 10-star rating, to mean much, it is hardly ever a good sign when the reviews for a show are this polarized, right from the start.

The future seems uncertain

Although Warner Bros. Discovery has not released the official viewership numbers for the first season of America’s Backyard Gold yet, the mixed reviews are likely not exactly the kind of rousing success that Turin or the production team were expecting for a new Gold Rush spin-off.

And the fact that the show has still not been added to streaming platforms outside of the United States certainly will not help its viewership numbers in the long-run.

However, it is perhaps slightly too early to count America’s Backyard Gold out, completely.

The Gold Rush fandom – pardon the pun – is a goldmine for the network and even if America’s Backyard Gold was not an overnight success, it has likely been successful enough so far to warrant another attempt.

At this point, we would guess that the show will probably be renewed for at least one or two more seasons (or perhaps add a co-host or change the format slightly), before Warner Bros. Discovery officially pulls the plug on the show.

Also read: 

• America’s Backyard Gold: Can you actually make money prospecting for gold on the coast?
• Is America’s Backyard Gold Dave Turin’s Fool’s Errand?