Netflix accused of “destroying television” after Dead Boy Detectives cancellation

After only one season, Dead Boy Detectives has been cancelled at Netflix, leaving subscribers to scratch their heads once again at the streamer’s approach.

It’s not the first time the streaming service has abruptly cancelled one of their new TV shows and movies, and it won’t be the last. The first season of Dead Boy Detectives was released back in April, with the cancellation being announced on August 30.

Granted, the show’s journey to the small screen wasn’t straightforward. After initially being commissioned for a pilot by Max in 2021, the series got the greenlit at that same platform before being sold to Netflix in 2023.

Despite an impressive opening (the show landed on Netflix’s Top 10 TV chart for three weeks after it premiered), the show’s viewership dropped significantly, gaining just 1.8 million views in its third week.

However, on the critical side, Dead Boy Detectives thrived. Even at the time of writing, the supernatural show sits at 92% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a 90% Popcornmeter score.

The show follows two (dead) boys, who pair up in the afterlife to solve mysteries involving the undead and unnatural. It was already attached to an established IP, being part of the Sandman universe, as the characters were introduced in the The Sandman #25 comic book.

For the small but loyal Dead Boy Detective fanbase, the news is just another reason to slam Netflix for axing shows.

“The fact that Netflix told them to go ahead and write a second season before season one was even released and yet they still cancelled it????” one X user noted.

“We need to talk about how this is not only messing with viewership, but ruining actors’ careers,” said another.

A third went so far as to say: “There’s really no point in watching new shows on streaming services anymore, is there?”

“It must be so disheartening to be crew on a Netflix show almost knowing for certain it’s gonna be cancelled,” pointed out another.

“Jokes aside, whoever of you sees this,” wrote one user. “Not a single cent, and I mean this, of your f**king money is worth paying for Netflix anymore. These people are destroying television down to the f**king core of building fandoms and giving jobs to people.”

For more, check out all the best TV shows of 2024 so far. You can also find out what happened to The Sandman movie, or for something darker, check out our list of the best horror movies.