HBO Cancels A Critically Acclaimed Show After One Season
HBO has canceled a critically acclaimed and fan-favorite show after just one season. It's a tough blow for a very good series.
This article is more than 2 years old
Lovecraft Country took HBO users by storm with its unique blend of sci-fi, period piece, horror, fantasy, and compelling social commentary that hit close to home for Americans with the recent cases of police brutality and protests that swept the nation. Unfortunately, Deadline has reported that the company is not moving forward with a second season, despite it being a hit amongst viewers at home and critics.
Initially, a second season was on the table. HBO let showrunner Misha Green and her team of writers go beyond the book of the same name to continue the story. Green had ideas and was going to work it out on paper to strike a deal to continue the hit series. For reasons not quite clear, the discussion internally was taken further and led to a decision to pull the plug.
In an interview, Green told Deadline previously of what she was cooking up, back when the deal with HBO was still available. Her goal would have been to “reclaim the genre storytelling space that people of color have typically been left out of.”
Green took to Twitter to give fans a tease of what could have been if HBO did not shut down the show. It would have an America where it “used to sit.” On the map of the U.S., much of the north and mid-west are green and labeled “Tribal Nations of the West.” A white strip through some of the south, midwest, and east coast is named “Whitelands.” The south and most of the east coast donned the name “New Negro Republic.” Finally, a yellow region of the top of the east coast is the “Jefferson Commonwealth.”
Lovecraft Country went above and beyond on HBO due to rave reviews and word of mouth. The finale hit a high note with 1.5 million viewers, making it the most-watched episode of a new HBO Max original within its first day. That same debut episode would reach 10 million views by the time the finale aired.
In front and behind the camera were huge names to give the HBO horror series support. It was produced by J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot and Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions. Green, who ran it, was already hitting hard with Underground, a period piece on the Civil War. She had directed one episode of her horror series along with Charlotte Sieling (Homeland), Helen Shaver (Vikings), Jeffery Nachmanoff (Homeland), Nelson McCormick (Criminal Minds), Victoria Mahoney (You), Cheryl Dunye (Delilah), Yann Demange (Dead Set), and Daniel Sackheim (True Detective).
Like many HBO shows, Lovecraft Country had stars who were either well established beforehand or are currently rising into the view of the mainstream. It was led by Jurnee Smollett (Underground), Jonathan Majors (Da 5 Bloods), Aunjanue Ellis (When They See Us), and Wunmi Mosaku (Loki).
Before getting adapted into an HBO show, Lovecraft Country was a novel by Matt Ruff, who got his horror piece out into the world in 2016. He has written other books, too, like The Mirage, Bad Monkeys, and his latest release, 88 Names.
