To the dismay of its many fans, Netflix canceled the third season of fantasy live-action series Shadow and Bone. Although its second season was popular – according to an article by Deadline, it found its place in the English-language top 10 shows for five weeks – it wasn’t popular enough to convince Netflix to save it.
The streaming service’s decision to cancel the show likely stems from effects of recent actor and writer strikes. These strikes put production on hold, causing the shows to miss their planned release dates and create a “pipeline logjam,” as observed by Deadline. Although Deadline notes it had the advantage of having a second season unlike many other shows canceled after the strike, it was likely cut due to its popularity not matching its high budget as a fantasy series.
Based on a series of young adult novels by Leigh Bardugo, the Netflix series is set in the fictional “Grishaverse” where individuals have magical abilities and are threatened by a “Fold” containing vicious creatures that divides the country of Ravka in half. The series follows the journey of young Ravkan soldier Alina Starkov upon discovering that she has a unique ability that has the potential to mend the damage done by the Fold. Although it follows the main plot of Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone trilogy, it also includes characters from Six of Crows, a duology set in the same universe. According to Entertainment Weekly, a spinoff series was in the works for the plot of Six of Crows, but it has since also been canceled.
Author Leigh Bardugo claimed in an Instagram post that although she is “heartbroken and deeply disappointed” by the cancellation of the adaption of her series, she is also grateful that she is one of “the lucky few” authors “who can look at an adaptation with pride and tremendous joy.” She closed the message with the phrase “no mourners” – a reference to her Six of Crows series – to encourage fans of the series to be thankful for what they were able to enjoy rather than upset at what they are missing.
