Five Netflix shows we wish weren’t cancelled
Netflix is a little like that friend who drags you to a party and introduces you to the most interesting person in the room… and then ghosts you before you even get their number.
In this case, it’s about the shows the streamer brings us. Just when a show starts to hit its stride, the streamer drops the axe. Fans are left hanging with characters frozen mid-sentence, and they watch potential storylines vanish into the algorithm while they hit their heads in frustration.
The cancellations sting not only because we loved these shows but also because they had more to give. Each one had room to grow, a fanbase forming, and sparks of creativity worth nurturing. Instead, Netflix pulled the plug before the lights could properly come on.
Sure, the big-name heartbreaks (Sense8, The OA) are infamous for these. But the shows we have brought you today are the quieter tragedies. It shows that they could have thrived with patience. Some were quirky and inventive, while some were pure comfort shows. But one thing is common: they were just starting to build their worlds.
So here’s our little protest. These are five Netflix shows we wish had been given the time to bloom, not tossed on the cancellation pile before their moment.
Five Netflix shows we wish weren’t cancelled
Dead Boy Detectives (2024–2025)
Based on Neil Gaiman’s comics, Dead Boy Detectives was a charming show. It made you want to keep digging deeper and deeper. You watch two ghostly teens solving supernatural mysteries in the wittiest possible way. It was spooky and carried that Sandman energy that Netflix clearly knew had an audience.
But Netflix never gave it the runway. Originally, the show was developed for HBO Max, but it was shuffled over to Netflix, where it didn’t get the marketing push of The Sandman. Despite positive reviews, viewership wasn’t strong enough by Netflix’s standards, and the show was quietly killed. The tragedy? It was meant to expand the Gaiman TV universe with crossovers and long arcs. Instead, it became a footnote.
The Brothers Sun (2024)
From ghosts, let’s move to gangsters. The Brothers Sun was an action-comedy built on martial arts, family drama, and Michelle Yeoh being her flawless self. It had high-stakes crime and the kind of mother-son dynamic that made it more than just another shootout series.
And yet, one season in, it was gone. Reports pointed to viewership drop-offs after week one. Too many people sampled it, and too few stuck with it. For a show with an expensive budget, that was enough to seal its fate. Which stings, because season two was expected to dive deeper into the triad power struggles and the messy family dynamics. With patience, it could have grown into Netflix’s answer to Warrior or Narcos. Instead, it was cut mid-fight.
I Am Not Okay With This (2020)
Teen shows on Netflix often come and go, but I Am Not Okay With This deserved a longer life. Imagine a sharp yet awkward high school drama and dangerous superpowers. Like part John Hughes, part Stephen King. The first season in 2020 ended on a cliffhanger that had fans buzzing. Where was Sydney’s story going? Who was the shadowy figure following her? We never got answers, because the show was cancelled almost instantly.
Then came the pandemic. Production costs skyrocketed, and Netflix didn’t want to invest more in a small-scale series. Officially, that’s why it was axed. Unofficially? It feels like they gave up too quickly. The creators had mapped out a three-season arc, but instead, we were left staring at an ending that promised fireworks, only for the fuse to be snuffed out.
Fate: The Winx Saga (2021–2022)
This show was a live-action remake of the beloved Winx Club cartoon. It leaned into moody YA fantasy. It wasn’t flawless, but it was entertaining. An easy-to-watch show with a glossy, guilty-pleasure plot with friendship, romance, and magic at its core. For fans of supernatural teen drama, it scratched an itch.
Netflix pulled the plug after two seasons. The reason? It was pricey, and viewership didn’t justify the cost compared to other fantasy hits. But the bones for something bigger were there. Season three was set to expand the lore around Bloom and the Dragon Flame, taking the show into darker territory. Cutting it off meant leaving its world half-built.
Anne with an E (2017–2019)
And then there’s the one that still feels like a gut punch: Anne with an E. This wasn’t just another teen drama or genre show. Instead, it was a reimagining of Anne of Green Gables with modern sensibilities and emotional depth. It gave us a heroine who was hopeful and fiercely imaginative. The series was balanced with warmth with sharp social themes.
The problem wasn’t ratings. It was business. The series was co-produced with CBC in Canada, and negotiations between the two networks broke down. Netflix wanted global rights; CBC didn’t want to give them up. Fans launched petitions and hashtags, but season four never happened. What makes it worse is that the creator had clear plans: Anne’s young adulthood, college years, activism, and a slow-burning romance with Gilbert. A whole life left untold, cut off because two companies couldn’t agree.