Summary
It has become increasingly clear to me thatNetflixfavors quantity over quality. As of April 2024,Netflix boasts the most subscriptions of any video-on-demand (VOD) or streaming service platform, boasting over 269.6 million paid membershipsacross 190 countries. Since the premieres ofLilyhammer,House of Cards, andOrange is the New Black, Netflix Originals have boomed, and now account for half of the streamer’s total library. That said, Netflix is churning out content — and not everything gets the same marketing budget, support, or leap of faith. Years later, certain seemingly random Netflix cancelations still sting.
10Daredevil
3 Seasons | 2015–18
AlthoughDaredevilis making a grand return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), the Netflix series cancelation still stands out as one of the most frustrating to date. The first-ever Marvel Netflix series,Daredevilfollows Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) a blind lawyer-by-day who fights crime as the titular masked vigilante by night. One of my favorite aspects ofDaredevilis that it actively avoided MCU movie crossovers. Not to mention, it was noticeably darker than the other Marvel projects of the day.Despite rave reviews, Emmy nominations, and spin-off shows,Daredevilwas axed after three seasons.
Charlie Cox later reprised his role in several MCU projects, includingShe-Hulk: Attorney at Law, and will star in Disney+‘sDaredevil: Born Again(2025).
Daredevil
Daredevil is a Netflix original series starring Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock. The TV show ran for three seasons before being canceled by Netflix, despite being critically praised. Kingpin was the main antagonist in seasons 1 and 3 and also introduced Jon Benrthal’s Punisher in season 2. Daredevil was followed by Disney+’s Daredevil: Born Again.
9Tuca & Bertie
1 Season | 2019
A hit with critics and viewers alike,Tuca & Bertieis an underrated animated showand a truly fresh entry in the adult-animation canon. Tragically, the show was cut short by Netflix’s cancel-happy decision-makers. Created by cartoonist Lisa Hanawalt,Tuca & Bertiestars Tiffany Haddish and Ali Wong as the voices of the titular best pals. Two months after its acclaimed debut, the hilarious-yet-poignant series was canceled, prompting a flurry of outraged social media posts, think-pieces, and petitions to renewTuca & Bertie.A prime victim of Netflix’s problematic algorithm,Tuca & Bertiewas renewed for two more seasons by Adult Swim.
Tuca & Bertie
Tuca & Bertie is an animated series created by Lisa Hanawalt, focusing on the friendship between two anthropomorphic bird women living in the same apartment building. Voiced by Tiffany Haddish and Ali Wong, the series explores themes of friendship, adulthood, and personal growth, balancing humor with more serious topics.
8Archive 81
1 Season | 2022
Perhaps the worst part ofArchive 81’s cancelation is that we’ll never really know how the horror-meets-thriller show and its mysteries were supposed to pan out. Executive produced by iconic horror director James Wan,Archive 81follows Dan (Mamoudou Athie), the new hire at a mysterious company who is tasked with restoring video footage of Melody’s (Dina Shihabi) documentary project. Soon enough, Melody’s disappearance and a cult take center stage.In the show’s first two weeks on Netflix, it racked up 128.47 million hours-watched— but Netflix still cut the mystery short bycancelingArchive 81two months later.
Archive 81is based on a 2016 podcast of the same name.
Archive 81
Archive 81 is a horror mystery series created for Netflix that follows archivist Dan Turner who has taken a job restoring a collection of damaged videotapes from 1994. Reconstructing the work of a documentary filmmaker named Melody Pendras, he is drawn into her investigation of a dangerous cult at the Visser apartment building. This place had burned down years prior, leaving several mysteries in its wake.
71899
Fans ofDarkrejoiced upon hearing about1899, another German language science-fiction-forward mystery series created by Jantje Friese and Baran bo Odar. The show follows a group of emigrants as they travel on a steamship from the United Kingdom to New York City. Four months earlier, theKerberos’ sister ship,Prometheus, vanished, which sets a compelling mystery into motion. The most expensive German television series of all time,1899became the most-watched series in 58 countries just a few days after its initial release. With solid reviews and 79.27 million hours viewed in its first few days,1899was unfairly axed by Netflixwith little reason given.
1899
1899 is a period piece drama that centers around a ship full of immigrants headed to the new land and entering the new century. Riding on the steamship Kerebos, the multilingual passengers contemplate how their lives will differ in this new era. However, when the ship comes across a missing vessel known as the Prometheus, the passengers will be taken through several mysterious experiences and drag them through their worst nightmares.
6Warrior Nun
2 Seasons | 2020–22
The cancelation of Netflix’s fantasy-dramaWarrior Nunwas frustrating for several reasons. Not only did the show boast a fresh premise, but it also featured LGBTQ+ characters at its center. Based on the comic book character Warrior Nun Areala, the show stars Alba Baptista as Ava Silva, an orphan who discovers her supernatural powers and joins an order of ancient warrior nuns. A pulpy throwback to shows likeBuffy the Vampire Slayer,Warrior Nunboasted a dedicated fanbase. Frustratingly,Netflix’s decision to nix the show continued the “Cancel Your Gays” trope, marking yet another woman-led show with queer representation that the streamer axed.
6 Biggest Things That Would Have Happened In Warrior Nun Season 3
Warrior Nun season 2’s finale, combined with recent comments from showrunner Simon Barry, helps decipher what would have happened in season 3.
In 2023, it was announced thatWarrior Nunwill continue with a trilogy of films, but the movies won’t follow the TV show.
Warrior Nun
Based on the comic series Warrior Nun Areala, Warrior Nun is a Netflix series created by Simon Barry. When an orphaned teen wakes up in a morgue and a mysterious artifact lodged inside her, she learns she is part of an ancient order tasked with hunting demons - and that she’s the chosen Halo-Bearer with unique superpowers.
5Sense8
2 Seasons & A Movie | 2015–18
One of Netflix’s most ambitious shows to date,Sense8was likely canceled because of its massive production budget. The inventive premise, which required the series to film on location across multiple continents, sees eight strangers around the world able to share each other’s thoughts and actions. Eager to find out why, and hunted by a shady organization, the interconnected group learn to leverage each individual’s unique skills. Helmed byLana and Lilly Wachowski (The Matrix),Sense8is one of Netflix’s most original, inclusive, and enduring shows. Thankfully,the streamer at least let the Wachowskis wrap their story up with aSense8movie.
Sense8
Created by the Wachowski sisters, Sense8 features an ensemble cast playing eight different people from around the world, who discover that they are suddenly mentally linked with one another and begin experiencing each other’s lives and feelings. As the sensates begin to get to know each other, they must face a growing threat to all their lives by using their newfound empathic powers to their advantage.
4Mindhunter
2 Seasons | 2017–19
A psychological crime thriller from executive producers David Fincher (Gone Girl) and Charlize Theron,Mindhunterfollows Jonathan Groff’s Holden Ford and Holt McCallany’s Bill Tench, who — along with psychologist Wendy Carr (Anna Torv) — operate the FBI’s newly minted Behavioral Science Unit. The 1970s-set period piece has Holden and his colleagues interviewing captured serial killers in the hopes that understanding their unique psychology will allow them to profile still-active killers and solve ongoing cases. Incredibly engrossing and well-acted,the show wasn’t so much canceled asMindhunterwas put on indefinite hold by Fincher, who ultimately scrapped his five-season plan.
Mindhunter
From executive producers David Fincher and Charlize Theron comes Mindhunter, a series that chronicles the founding of the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit used to track and apprehend serial killers. Mindhunter follows Agent Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff) and Bill Tench (Holt McCallany) as they work to establish a framework for understanding the minds of some of America’s most dangerous serial killers. Mindhunter adapts a number of true crime stories, including the BTK murders and the notorious Co-Ed Killer, Edmund Kemper.
3Everything Sucks!
1 Season | 2018
One of the few coming-of-age comedy-dramas to center on younger teens,Everything Sucks!isa compelling 1996-set series that captures the tone and atmosphere of the ’90s shows that inspired it, includingMy So-Called Life. Set in Boring, Oregon, the series centers on new-to-town freshman and movie-making enthusiast Luke (Jahi Di’Allo Winston), who falls for fellow AV Club member Kate (Peyton Kennedy). The daughter of the school’s principal, Kate comes to terms with her queerness — and her crush on popular theater kid Emaline (Sydney Sweeney). Despite solid reviews,Everything Sucks!was canceled and went without a new home.
Everything Sucks!
Set in the 1990s, Everything Sucks! follows the lives of high school misfits in Boring, Oregon, as they navigate the trials of adolescence, including friendships, budding romances, and the clash between the A/V Club and Drama Club.
2GLOW
3 Seasons | 2017–19
Thecancelation ofGlowis beyond wild — namely because Netflix renewed the series for a brief stint before walking that renewal back. A comedy-drama mashup,Glowstars heavy-hitters like Alison Brie, Betty Gilpin, and Marc Maron, and revolves around a fictionalized version of the 1980s syndicated women’s professional wrestling circuit — the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, a.k.a. GLOW. The Emmy-nominated series delivered a knock-out third season and was renewed for a fourth and final outing in 2019. A year later,Netflix reversed the decision, blaming the cancelation on the COVID-19 pandemic shutdownsand offering no hope for a future resolution.
GLOW
Based on the 1980s wrestling phenomenon of the same name, GLOW (aka Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling) is a comedy-drama series created by Netflix. It focuses on the women and people behind the unconventional new wrestling federation. The show follows three main characters, struggling actress Ruth Wilder, retried soap star Debbie Eagen, and director Sam Sylvia as they battle each other over how they wish to elevate their new project, all while dealing with the struggles of discrimination in entertainment during the 80s.
1The OA
2 Seasons | 2016–19
Created and executive produced by Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij — the duo behind Hulu’s recent hitA Murder at the End of the World—The OAcombines elements of sci-fi, fantasy, horror, and thriller to create a truly singular, mind-bending experience. In the first season, a woman named Prairie Johnson (Marling) reappears after vanishing for 7 years. Although she was blind before her disappearance, Prairie can see. From near-death experiences to parallel universes,The OAleaves no stone unturned. Frustratingly, the show’s five-part story ended early. In light ofThe OA’s cancelation,fans planned a hunger strike outside Netflix’s Los Angeles Headquarters in protest.
Netflix Offered To End Cancelled Show With A Movie, The OA Co-Creator Reveals Why They Declined
The OA co-creator Zal Batmanglij reveals why he and Brit Marling declined Netflix’s offer to end the cancelled science fiction show with a movie.
The OA
The OA is a mystery drama series that follows Prairie Johnson, who returns to her hometown after being missing for seven years with her sight mysteriously restored. As her baffling reappearance raises questions, she refrains from discussing her ordeal with authorities or family, sparking intrigue and speculation.
