While many Netflix cancelations come as a surprise to subscribers, this year’s first axing will come as a surprise to nobody, especially after the hit supernatural series Dead Boy Detectives was canceled last year. The streamer has officially pulled the plug on The Sandman, and this is likely only the start of many more cancelations to come.
In 2024, Netflix incurred the wrath of its fanbase after scrapping several series, including the dark comedy Greek mythology-inspired series Kaos and the flawless animation show My Dad the Bounty Hunter. Indeed, not every cancelation is welcome news – just look at these nine canceled Netflix shows in 2024 for an idea of some shows that are still worth watching.
But while some of the best Netflix shows from last year will be missed by viewers, I’m not sure the same can be said about the first canceled Netflix show of 2025 considering the controversies surrounding its creator…
The Sandman to end after season 2
Netflix has announced that its dark fantasy epic The Sandman has been canceled and will come to an end after its upcoming second season. It’s been said that the series is finishing as the story of Dream/Morpheus (Tom Sturridge) is coming to a natural end, but there’s also the ongoing sexual misconduct accusations against Neil Gaiman, who created The Sandman DC comics and developed the TV series, that could be a contributing factor.
In showrunner Allan Heinberg’s statement about the cancelation, he didn’t mention the allegations against Gaiman but revealed that the reason why The Sandman was ending is because they only had enough story for one more season. “The Sandman series has always been focused exclusively on Dream’s story, and back in 2022, when we looked at the remaining Dream material from the comics, we knew we only had enough story for one more season. We are extremely grateful to Netflix for bringing the team all back together and giving us the time and resources to make a faithful adaptation in a way that we hope will surprise and delight the comics’ loyal readers as well as fans of our show.”
The Sandman tells the tale of Morpheus, aka Dream/the titular Sandman, one of the seven beings known as The Endless and the King of the Dream Dimension. After escaping decades of imprisonment by a mortal wizard, he goes on a quest for his lost objects of power.
The Sandman spin-off Dead Boy Detectives was also canceled by Netflix last year and fans campaigned to bring the show back from the dead when they learned that the show had been scrapped. Given that its based on the characters from the DC Comics, a big viewership was promised, however, this wasn’t enough to resurrect it for another season.
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