Netflix Claims It’s ‘Never Canceled a Successful Show’

Falling in love with a brand new Netflix series only to see it canceled is always a bummer, but Netflix says it’s “never canceled a successful show.” 

In an interview with Bloomberg, Netflix new co-CEOs Greg Peters and Ted Sarandos opened up on the streaming platform’s decision-making process. After the executive duo were asked about their relationship with the creative community and viewer ire after years of premature series ends, Sarandos responded: 

“We have never canceled a successful show. A lot of these shows were well-intended but talk to a very small audience on a very big budget. The key to it is you have to be able to talk to a small audience on a small budget and a large audience at a large budget. If you do that well, you can do that forever.”

As for any numbers that help paint a clearer picture, that’s a little harder to come by. Netflix chooses data on series viewership to share with the public, mostly limiting that to the extra impressive, like the 64 million views raked in by the big cat documentary Tiger King. The streaming service has issued more transparent reports in recent years, but metrics remain restricted to its top performers. 

In their Bloomberg interview, Sarandos and Peters don’t offer much more on the specifics of canceled series, but they do speak to new monetization strategies taken with an ad-supported tier after 2022’s subscription losses. When asked if the price difference between an ad tier was enticing enough from the ad-free Netflix plan, Peters explained its purpose was for “Price sensitive customers.”

“Basic with ads is getting a healthy share in a way that says it is complementary to what’s going on with our overall plan set,” Peters told Bloomberg. “It’s serving a purpose. I’m confident about that.”

Regardless of their rationale, Netflix and its lengthy history of dropping new series just as they get started remain a pain point amongst some viewers. Within the last few years, we’ve seen an end to shows like The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Resident Evil, The Midnight Club, and dozens more. 

Andrea Shearon is a freelance contributor for IGN covering games and entertainment. She’s worn several hats over her seven-year career in the games industry, with bylines over at Fanbyte, USA Today’s FTW, TheGamer, VG247, and RPG Site. Find her on Twitter (@Maajora) or the Materia Possessions podcast chatting about FFXIV, RPGs, and any series involving giant robots.