Cancellation Watch: Status updates for the sci fi and fantasy shows on the broadcast networks, cable channels, and streaming services as well as breaking news on the currently airing, returning, and upcoming genre entries.
Status Updates
The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon (AMC, Airing 1st Season, Renewed): The premiere episode for this TWD spin-off pulled a 0.11 rating based on same-day viewing for the 18-49 demographic with 639K total viewers. That is lower than the 0.17 score that The Walking Dead: Dead City had for its premiere this past Summer but better than the numbers Tales of the Walking Dead saw in Fall 2022. The Daryl Dixon spin-off has already been renewed for a second season, but these ratings are suggesting a continued trend of diminishing returns in viewership for the TWD franchise.
Harley Quinn (Max, Completed 1st Season, Renewal Possible): This animated DC series wraps up its fourth season this week and it has not charted in the Nielsen Streaming Rankings. According to the showrunners, there has been no word on a fifth season yet, though they do have plans for more adventures from Harley Quinn and Co. But the DCEU is going through a shakeup with James Gunn and Peter Safran in charge, and this show is a carryover from the old continuum. It could be allowed to continue on, but Max (previously HBO Max) has been in cancelling mode of late. Fans should definitely make some noise on the social networks if they want to see this one continue into a fifth season.
Skull Island (Netflix, Completed 1st Season, Renewal Possible): The animated Skull Island–which is tied to Legendary’s Monsterverse franchise–premiered back in June but failed to make it into the Netflix Top 10. Showrunner Brian Duffield has indicated that scripts have been written for the second season of the show and some initial recording has occurred, but there has not been a renewal announcement yet. Netflix tends to give more leeway to its animated entries, and Legendary could be charging less of a licensing fee on this property because it acts as a promotion to other entries in the franchise. So it is still possible that this one could continue to a second year.
One Piece (Netflix, Streaming 1st Season, Renewal Possible): This live-action Anime adaptation topped the Netflix charts for a second week, pulling in 146 million hours of viewing across 19.3 million accounts. It was very expensive to produce, though, so expect Netflix execs to continue to follow the trajectory of its viewership over the next few weeks before giving it the greenlight for a second season.
Cancellation/Renewal Score:
The 2023-24 season has only just begun, but we already have two cancellations with Disney+ sinking both Nautilus and The Spiderwick Chronicles before they even premiered (more on that at this link). That puts the Cancellation/Renewal Score at three cancelled and ending shows (23% of shows tracked) vs. four renewed (33%) so far. Below are the season’s numbers, and you can see the list of shows and keep up with the score throughout the week at our Cancellation Watch Page.
| Show Count | 12 | ||
| Cancelled | 2 | 15.4% | |
| Ending | 1 | 7.7% | 25.0% |
| Renewed | 4 | 33.3% | |
| On the Bubble | 0 | 0.0% | |
| Renewal Possible | 5 | 38.5% | |
| Mini-Series | 1 |
Be sure to follow the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site for breaking news and updates. And for the latest news and discussions on sci fi and fantasy television, follow r/SciFiTV
Follow our Sci Fi TV Schedule for all the currently airing and upcoming sci fi and fantasy television shows, and you can see the premieres for all the upcoming genre entries at this link.
MAX just sent email regarding Harley Quinn…not good
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You already started the series… Stream now to find out how it all ends.
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