Netflix has sadly canceled Shadow and Bone after two seasons, along with four one-season shows: the live-action series Glamorous and three animated programs, Agent Elvis, Farzar and Captain Fall. This news comes one week after the end of the SAG-AFTRA strike, and according to a report the streamer is likely canceling these shows as they reexamine their production plans for the coming years.
Shadow and Bone, Glamorous, Agent Elvis, Farzar and Captain Fall's cancellations were all announced at the same time, per Deadline. The report stated that following the end of the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes, the streamer as well as other networks and platforms, “continue to evaluate the impact from the strike-related seven-month production shutdown."
While it seems shocking that Netflix would cancel five shows at once, the report pointed out that during the strikes, the streamer only announced a few cancellation decisions, like the end of Wellmania. They did reveal renewals of shows like One Piece, The Lincoln Lawyer and many others, however, when it came to not moving forward with shows, they remained quiet.
The report explained that streamers will be impacted by the strikes moving forward as there will now be a “pipeline logjam for the late 2024 and 2025” seasons because various projects missed their projected premieres. Then, on top of that, streamers have been reevaluating their strategies for a while now as they deal with the ever-changing landscape of media.
This is likely why Shadow and Bone was canceled after Season 2. The Grishaverse series’ second installment premiered in March on the 2023 TV schedule, so this news comes a long time after the episodes came out. A high budget, a smaller impact than Season 1, and a potential delay on a third season or spinoff, are likely why Netflix decided to not move forward with the series.
Glamorous was the other live-action series canceled by Netflix, however, it only made it one season. The series started as a pilot for The CW, and then moved to the streamer.
Animated shows make up the other three series that won’t be moving forward. Matthew McConaughey’s Agent Elvis came out in March, Farzar was released during the summer of 2022, and Captain Fall came out in July 2023, and was in the middle of its first season. All these animated shows come during a time of evolution for Netflix’s adult animation department. It’s now under new leadership, and the three aforementioned shows were created under the old administration.
It feels like Netflix and other streamers are canceling shows left and right. According to a study by Variety, the company’s cancellation rate is 10.2%. While that seems low, it’s important to remember that the legacy streamers' output of original content is very high. So, while their percentage is seemingly small, there are still many shows that get axed.
Saying goodbye to shows is never easy, and it’s incredibly sad that Netflix canceled five shows at once. To go back and watch these series, even though they won’t be going forward, you can stream them all with a Netflix subscription.
