Although Ugly Betty has not yet been brought back for its long-rumored reboot, there is still plenty of other Ugly Betty-related content out there for fans to watch.
Ugly Betty may have only been on the air for a few seasons, but the show left a lasting legacy which is still being spoken about to this day.
There is even an official spin-off web series and countless sister-shows which fans can enjoy until some network or streaming service finally decides to reboot the series.
The Ugly Betty legacy
It is certainly rare for a show like Ugly Betty, which was only on air for about four years to begin with, to still be one of the studio’s most talked about shows more than a decade after it was cancelled.
But Ugly Betty’s lasting legacy and the show’s loyal cult-following are a tribute not only to the show’s brilliant satirical writing, but also to its clever handling of a number of LGBTQIA+ issues, its commentary on class-disparity and even its exploration of unattainable beauty standards, which were all well before their time for a silly early 2000s dramady.
Everything you need to know about the Ugly Betty spin-offs
Ugly Betty was not only responsible for kick-starting America Ferrera’s now-very-successful acting career, but it is also one of the most-missed shows in ABC history.
But although the show’s stars have frequently expressed their willingness to return to the set, there has been no official news of a renewal and Ugly Betty fans are still searching for the next best thing.
The next best thing for Ugly Betty content comes in the form of a spin-off. The version of Ugly Betty which fans in the United States grew to love between 2006 and 2010 only has one official spin-off.
This spin-off is a web series called Mode After Hours, which follows two characters from the original series, Marc St. James and Amanda Tanen.
However, it is near impossible to talk about Ugly Betty spin-offs without mentioning the original show Yo Soy Betty, La Fea, on which Ugly Betty itself was based.
Yo Soy Betty, La Fea has been dubbed, subbed and distributed all over the world. This show has even inspired the creation of another popular telenovela, called Betty en NY.
Ana María Orozco, who starred in Yo Soy Betty, La Fea also recently signed on to a reboot titled Betty La Fea, which will premiere more than 20 years after the original show ended.
As can be expected, the news of a reboot has certainly reignited the glimmer of hope that Ugly Betty could still make its return to television, all these years after it was first taken off the air.
All about Mode After Hours
The Mode After Hours web series aired in conjunction with the first three seasons of Ugly Betty.
It followed the office gossips, Amanda (who was played by Becki Newton on both shows) and Marc (played by Michael Urie) as they traipse around the Mode office, after everyone except the Mode security guard have left for the night.
The series ran for three seasons between 2008 and 2019, with 19 episodes, filled with Amanda and Marc getting up to all sorts of things.
This includes them setting up dating profiles, walking in pretend fashion shows, planning April Fool’s Day pranks and more.
The Yo Soy Betty, La Fea spin-offs
The original Yo Soy Betty, La Fea has been dubbed and subbed for release in various different countries, including Greece, India, Poland, Bulgaria, Turkey, Japan, Vietnam and many more and has been remade over 20 times.
The most recent remake “Betty La Fea” (which is set to start airing on Amazon Prime Video in 2024) will follow Betty (Orozco) who is now a successful and grown-up version of the same character from the original series.
So if you are looking for a Yo Soy Betty, La Fea spin-off that is as close as it gets to another Ugly Betty, “Betty en NY”, this probably your best bet.
An Ugly Betty television movie: The spin-off that never was
ABC made the decision to cancel Ugly Betty just four seasons in, in 2010, because of the series’s steadily declining ratings and viewership.
And it did not take long for rumors to start swirling that some of the stars had signed on to do a special television reboot.
Of course, we now know that this reboot never ended up happening, but the show’s stars still seem willing to make a comeback happen.
In fact, Eric Mabius (Daniel Meade) confirmed as recently as 2021 that “there’s something being discussed” when asked about an Ugly Betty reboot, though he did not elaborate on any details.
