Netflix Report Shows Why Sci-Fi Series Was Divisively Canceled After 1 Season (Despite Its Good Reviews)

Summary

• Netflix’s sci-fi series 1899 was canceled after one season due to low viewing numbers.
• Despite positive reviews from critics and audiences, 1899 failed to gain the same popularity as Netflix’s hit show Dark.
• In comparison, Wednesday, which premiered around the same time as 1899, was a huge success with 10 times more viewing hours.

Among Netflix‘s many canceled shows was a promising sci-fi series that was only able to enjoy one season, and there is finally an explanation for its gone-too-soon demise. Over the years, Netflix has invested a lot of money to become an established name as a production company in the entertainment industry, although its initial role was as a distribution and streaming service for other productions. Despite the fact that Netflix’s early original titles, such as 2016’s Stranger Things and The Crown, focused greatly on quality, it also focused on quantity, and quickly gained a reputation for scrapping titles that weren’t deemed very successful.

Until this year, Netflix had shied away from publicly opening up about its numbers and how long viewers watched its films and shows. After revealing the trending top 10 titles and most popular lists in 2021, the year 2023 brought a new change: Netflix’s first-ever data report called What We Watched: A Netflix Engagement Report, which the streaming company promises to release twice a year. The first report, from January to June 2023, covers more than 18,000 titles, both originals and licensed, and shines some light on Netflix’s most popular series. At the same time, the streamer’s data reveals why some titles weren’t pursued further, and why Netflix surprisingly canceled many shows.

Netflix’s Report Proves 1899 Didn’t Bring Strong Numbers Compared To 1 Of Its Hit Shows

The gone-too-soon series had a strong premise

Netflix’s engagement report explains why the sci-fi series 1899 was canceled after just one season, and the reason is that it didn’t bring in strong viewing numbers. The series came from Jantje Friese and Baran bo Odar, the creators of Netflix’s hit show Dark, but it failed to achieve the same popularity as the 2017-debuting series. Netflix’s 1899 premiered on November 17, 2022, and in the first half of 2023, it only brought a total of 51.8 million viewing hours (via Netflix), which was a very low total. In comparison, its spiritual sibling, Dark, was viewed for a total of 49 million across its three seasons in the first half of 2023, three years after its 2020 finale.

Of course, the comparison to Dark is unfair, since the now-ended series had a lot of time to gather more viewers. But, looking at one of Netflix’s hit shows gives a more accurate view of 1899‘s cancelation. Wednesday, which went on to break several Netflix records, premiered mere days after 1899 on November 23, 2022, and became a smash hit. Netflix’s Addams Family spinoff Wednesday was watched for 507.7 million hours in the following months, making it to the top five most-watched shows in 2023, almost ten times more than 1899.

Netflix’s Cancelled 1899 After Season 1 Despite Its Good Reviews

The sci-fi series 1899 was planned for more seasons

Although 1899 didn’t have time to convince the audience to watch it, it did strike a chord with critics. The sci-fi mystery series followed a ship of multicultural immigrants traveling from London to New York, who are caught in a mystery after they find a second vessel empty and adrift at sea. Netflix’s 1899 had strong reviews from critics and audiences, holding a critics’ rating of 77% and an audience score of 75% on Rotten Tomatoes. The sci-fi mystery story was planned to unfold over more seasons, 1899′s untimely cancelation put a stop to that. While many still await answers about 1899‘s unresolved mysteries and storylines, Netflix‘s data shines a light on why it was canceled after season 1.

Source: Netflix