It looks like we won’t find out what happens on the first successful mission to Mars after all. Netflix just cancelled the space drama Away after its first season.
The series followed Hilary Swank’s Emma Green as she led an international team on the first-ever mission to Mars. After a series of setbacks, the team ultimately (spoiler) successfully landed on the red planet in the season one finale. Thus, subsequent seasons would have seen the astronauts exploring the planet and eventually attempting to return home to Earth. But with the recent cancellation, we won’t ever see that happen.
Away premiered on September 4. So, the official cancellation came just over a month after the series first aired.
Why Was Away Cancelled?
It can sometimes seem difficult to pin down the reason Netflix cancels shows. That’s especially true when the series in question seems fairly popular. According to Deadline, Away spent several weeks as a top 10 show based on streaming viewership. During its first week, it actually ranked #2.
So why did Netflix cancel it?
The most likely culprit? The cost. Away undoubtedly required a large budget to develop a realistic outer space/spaceship feel. Netflix must have felt the viewership didn’t offset the cost.
But if a #2 show doesn’t provide enough viewership…what does? Personally, I suspect a lack of consistency also led Netflix to the decision to give Away the axe. For me, the series started strong but lost more and more momentum as it went on. I think a lot of people probably tuned in to the first couple episodes, but then stopped watching. A steep viewership dropoff combined with the high production cost may have been the death sentence for Away.
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Source: Deadline
