Is The Project next on the chopping block? Fears Channel Ten will axe the show amid bombshell theory – after The Bachelor and The Masked Singer were canned

Viewers of The Project have speculated that the series ‘wants to be stopped’.

Fans of the Network 10 show have been sharing their theories on social media about the series’ possible ending.

They have expressed particular concerns about the direction the programme has taken after airing a story on Thursday night about ‘smells that make you nostalgic’.

“The choice of the top story last night made me wonder if they are planning on getting fired,” one viewer noted.

Another was curious about the nature of the story, to which another viewer replied: ‘A bit of nonsense about certain smells that make you nostalgic about memories and experiences from the past. The kind of magazine filler story you would find on Studio 10.’

Speculation increased when another fan suggested that the show might switch from a current affairs program to something more like Studio 10.

“Which makes me wonder – are they still trying to be a current affairs show or are they slowly trying to transition into a Studio 10-esque show? They did both very well when it first started. But lately it just hasn’t had the same vibe,” they wrote.

Viewers have also noticed that the format of the show has changed significantly.

‘Trying another opening tonight. This time it was almost back to the old style opening where they introduced the big stories at the beginning,’ someone said.

“What was different was that it was a quick intro, with Sarah highlighting two stories that were coming up and Sam highlighting a more lighthearted story with a few laughs in it. That was good,” they continued.

‘The weird thing was that after the first story they brought up one of those stories again as “coming up”. That was stupid. Also weird, before the opening they discussed what had just happened in Deal or No Deal.’

On Friday, a Network 10 spokesperson confirmed that the show will not be going away anytime soon.

“The project remains an integral part of our content offering and rest assured it’s not going anywhere,” they told Ny Breaking Australia.

This comes after Ten recently began a round of cost-cutting, which saw both The Masked Singer and The Bachelors axed.

The future of the network, owned by Paramount Global, is uncertain as it continues to lose TV shows amid declining ratings and a crisis in advertising revenue, news.com.au reports.

In May, Dave Hughes and Osher Günsberg publicly confirmed that two of Channel Ten’s biggest reality shows, The Masked Singer and The Bachelor, had been axed. The network is currently in talks about a possible merger.

Viewers of the Network 10 program have taken to social media to share their theories about why the show could be set for axing

Channel 10 will also be shut down in two Australian states after the network’s broadcasts were halted in a major city over the weekend.

At midnight on Sunday, Ten was no longer broadcast live in Mildura, Victoria, much to the outrage of locals.

Network 10 does not own the regional channels and relies on distribution through joint venture operations. Mildura Digital Television has ceased broadcasting due to rising costs.

Now concerns have been raised over Ten’s future in Tasmania and the Northern Territory as broadcasters face “difficult decisions” due to the challenging climate.

The Project by Ten expressed concern that similar closures could happen across Australia and have a domino effect.

Fans of the show have expressed concerns about the direction the programme has taken, with one viewer commenting: ‘The choice of the main story last night made me wonder if they are trying to get axed.

The Northern Territory and Tasmania could be next targets, along with areas in regional Western Australia, according to the program.

“There are fears that Mildura is just the tip of the iceberg and that similar outages could occur across Australia, putting jobs at risk and potentially threatening access to local content, news and sport,” the long-running panel program said.

‘And the next in the firing line? Regional WA, the NT and all of Tasmania.’