The cancellation of Our Flag Means Death has devastated its fans, who have been lobbying hard to keep the show afloat: the fan petition to save the show has been signed more than 56,000 times already. But while Max isn't showing any signs of changing its mind, a new interview with its chief Casey Bloys offers at least a little bit of hope for the show's future.
Speaking to the Hollywood Reporter, Bloys said that the reason for the cancellation was that "the numbers weren't there for a renewal." However, "whenever we cancel a show, if a creator can set it up elsewhere, we support them. That is an option for Our Flag Means Death; it didn’t make sense for us but it might be for someone else. We let the producers know if they can find a home, we’ll be supportive of that."
Could Our Flag Means Death set sail once more?
There's no doubt that Our Flag Means Death is a critical success. Season one has 93% from the critics on Rotten Tomatoes and season two has an even higher rating of 96% with glowing reviews from publications including Cracked, Mashable, Decider, iO9, TV Guide, The Australian, TIME, RogerEbert.com, The Wall Street Journal, The Daily Beast, IndieWire, New York Magazine, the Chicago Tribune, The New York Times... I could go on.
And while critic reviews don't necessarily translate directly into increased subscriptions, highly rated shows also have a halo effect: people who make great shows want to show them on networks that show great shows.
Despite reports that Taika Waititi was considering an exit, creator David Jenkins says he was definitely in favour of completing the three-season arc. Posting on Twitter, he said that "Taika was fully on board and behind a S3. Dude’s the best".
Btw Taika was fully on board and behind a S3 😘. Dude’s the best.January 9, 2024
So far there's been no indication of interest from other streamers or networks, it's still early days. When shows are picked up after cancellation, any announcement is usually months afterwards. And while the numbers apparently don't work for Max – we don't even rate the series among the best Max shows we've seen – they may well work for another streamer that's willing to take a risk on making a third and final season of the much-loved show.
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