diff --git a/pkgs/development/python-modules/sphinx-thebe/default.nix b/pkgs/development/python-modules/sphinx-thebe/default.nix
index 203062ba532c..d031faa90c2a 100644
--- a/pkgs/development/python-modules/sphinx-thebe/default.nix
+++ b/pkgs/development/python-modules/sphinx-thebe/default.nix
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@
 buildPythonPackage rec {
   pname = "sphinx-thebe";
   version = "0.2.0";
+  format = "setuptools";
 
   disabled = pythonOlder "3.6";