Netflix canceled the teen drama First Kill after just one season.
According to the Deadline, (opens in new tab) the show, which premiered in the second week of June, wasn’t a total bombshell with Netflix subscribers, but it didn’t get the numbers it needed to earn a second season.
In Deadline’s report, a source close to Netflix told the site that “the series, which has not had the staying power of most Netflix hits, has not reached the limits of viewing and episode completion.”
This is despite very respectable viewership numbers in its first few weeks. The show racked up 30.3 million hours viewed in its first three days and 48.8 million hours viewed in its first full week, numbers that put it only behind Stranger Things and Peaky Blinders.
However, this quick start did not lead to continued viewing and the show’s popularity was not enough for Netflix to continue with the show.
Based on the short story of the same name by author VE Schwab, First Kill is a retelling of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. It follows Juliette Fairmont, a vampire from a long dynasty of vampires who are able to live in plain sight in Savannah, Georgia.
Approaching her 16th birthday, Juliette, who has spent her life until now living on blood pills, discovers that the pills are losing their effectiveness and she must face the prospect that it is time to make her first kill – something that she doesn’t want to.
Things get even more complicated with the arrival of a new girl in town, Calliope Burns, with whom Juliette quickly falls in love. The problem is, Calliope’s family history is just as complicated as Juliette’s. She is a monster hunter raised by a family of monster hunters. And, as with the hapless lovers in Shakespeare’s original, there’s plenty of drama.
Did the critics like the show?
They didn’t hate him, but they didn’t love him either. The show has a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 55%, which is not a defeat, but not enough to give the show a certified new rating.
Critics who liked it praised stating that the drama was not doing anything original with its vampire or teen drama influences, with bad reviews being harsh on its clumsy writing and general flatness.
In the past, modern versions of Shakespeare’s plays have proven to be a rich source of material for teen dramas, with 10 Things I Hate About You, she’s the man and she outshines it all earning a place in the hearts of teen movie-goers with her interpretations. intelligent in The Taming Of The Shrew, Twelfth Night and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. But it’s hard to imagine that First Kill will have the same longevity.
Analysis: Is Netflix back to its old ways?
After the bloodbath at the start of the year, both in terms of canceling shows and entire departments, First Kill’s ending seems far more commonplace for Netflix execs.
If there was enough appetite for another season of First Kill, production would need to start in the fall to release it in the first half of 2023 and that was not the case.
Now, he will join The Society, Chambers, Spinning Out, Grand Army, Tiny Pretty Things and Zero Chill in teen dramas that only lasted one season on Netflix.
Netflix has second seasons of Outer Banks, Fate: The Winx Saga, Blood & Water, and Ginny & Georgia in the coming months, so streamer execs still have some commitment to the teen-focused drama. First Kill was just, ahem, no bite…
Want to catch up on everything Netflix canceled in 2022? We’ve compiled all the shows here.