First Kill showrunner revealed her thoughts on why the popular LGBTQ+ series was cancelled.
Back in June, Netflix released the highly anticipated TV adaptation of the popular short story by Victoria “V.E.” Schwab.
The show follows teenage vampire Juliette (Sarah Catherine Hook), who must “make her first kill so she can take her place among her powerful vampire family.”
Juliette then sets her sights on the town’s new girl Calliope (Imani Lewis) – who just so happens to come from a long line of vampire hunters.
The synopsis adds: “Both find that the other won’t be so easy to kill and, unfortunately, way too easy to fall for.”
While the show received mixed reviews from critics, First Kill earned a large and dedicated fanbase – which resulted in the series landing on Netflix’s Global Top 10 TV list for three weeks.
However despite its success, the streamer announced the show’s cancellation on 2 August.
According to a report from Variety, the decision stemmed from “low viewership.”
In a recent interview with Daily Beast, First Kill showrunner Felicia D. Henderson shared her thoughts on why the show was cancelled.
“When I got the call to tell me they weren’t renewing the show because the completion rate wasn’t high enough, of course, I was very disappointed,” she told the news outlet.
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“What showrunner wouldn’t be? I’d been told a couple of weeks ago that they were hoping completion would get higher. I guess it didn’t.”
Henderson went on to say that Netflix’s lack of marketing regarding the show’s expansive plot may have contributed to it being cancelled.
“The art for the initial marketing was beautiful,” she continued. “I think I expected that to be the beginning and that the other equally compelling and important elements of the show – monsters vs. monster hunters, the battle between two powerful matriarchs, etc. – would eventually be promoted, and that didn’t happen.”
Towards the end of the interview, Henderson praised the show and its cast for making an impact in a short amount of time.
“I think the cast is among the most talented I’ve ever worked with. And their chemistry? Fire, for sure,” she said
“The show is kick ass, and we were in the top five globally and domestically for three of the first four weeks. I was very hopeful.”
The news of First Kill’s cancellation instantly drew backlash from fans, with many criticising Netflix for its lack of support for queer women-led shows.
One viewer tweeted: “Netflix is weird as hell for cancelling First Kill. A successful wlw show with a Black female lead being cancelled after outperforming SEVERAL Netflix originals?… what.”
Another fan wrote: “This isn’t even about whether you liked First Kill or not, it’s the fact that Netflix has consistently cancelled every show with a wlw couple as the main focus, regardless of how well the show performs #RenewFirstKill.”
As of this writing, fans have drafted not one but two petitions to save the series.
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