USA Network has postponed the season 1 finale of its acclaimed drama "Mr. Robot" as the events in the finale matched with the tragic shooting that took place in Virginia on early Wednesday.

The finale will now be aired on 2 September in its regular 10 pm time slot.

In a statement, USA Network explained that the decision to postpone the season finale was taken as it contained scenes similar to Wednesday's shooting.

"The previously filmed season finale of Mr. Robot contains a graphic scene similar in nature to today's tragic events in Virginia. Out of respect to the victims, their families and colleagues, and our viewers, we are postponing tonight's episode. Our thoughts go out to all those affected during this difficult time," the statement read.

On Wednesday morning, WDBJ-TV reporter Alison Parker and cameraman Adam Ward were shot dead during a live report for the station's morning news programme. The killer, Vester Lee Flanagan aka Bryce Williams, shot himself later and died in a hospital. 

Flanagan was a former WDBJ-TV employee who posted video of the shooting on his social media pages.

According to a TVLine report, "Mr. Robot" finale was earlier edited to include the recent Ashley Madison website hack.

Interestingly, "Mr. Robot" isn't the only television series to postpone or cancel episodes due to similarities with real-life events.

In 2012, Syfy's "Haven" was postponed in the wake of Sandy Hook school shooting that left 28 people dead. At the time, Syfy released a statement saying the episode that was meant to be aired contained "scenes of fictitious violence in a high school."

In 2013, an episode of "Hannibal" was also yanked due to its disturbing content in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombing.

A decision to cancel one of the show's episodes was taken after series creator Bryan Fuller told NBC that "given the cultural climate right now in the U.S., I think we shouldn't air the episode in its entirety," reported Variety.

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