Not even a month has passed since the debut of season 2 and already, Netflix has reached its unfortunate decision regarding the fate of Sense8. As you’ve no doubt heard, despite an overwhelmingly positive reaction to May’s premiere, the show’s second season will indeed be its last.
A big-budget project in the vein of Sense8 – coupled with its lengthy production process and costly VFX – meant that Lana and Lilly Wachowski’s series, one created in tandem with J. Michael Straczynski, really needed to hit the big leagues in order to be considered a success. And unfortunately, Sense8 never quite reached the dizzying heights of, say, Orange is the New Black or House of Cards, the result of which is a cancellation that many fans will no doubt consider to be premature.
In his review last month, our own TV critic Mitchel Broussard had nothing but praise for the sophomore run, writing: “One of the most intriguing and sincere sci-fi mythologies returns in Sense8’s second season, which never for a second loses sight of the aching humanity pulsing away at the center of the show’s breakneck adventure.”
Most fans would agree with those sentiments, it seems, as a petition has now sprung up over on Change.org, garnering 93,000 signatures already. “The cancellation of ‘Sense 8’ – season 3 has been completely unexpected,” it reads. “We don’t know any reasons yet, however it’s quite strange that a show that has received such positive response from a wide and heterogeneous audience, gets cancelled.”
With Netflix refusing to release viewing numbers, it’s hard to know how much of a chord the show actually struck. Reviews were always pretty positive, and it definitely had its fanbase, but it seems that just wasn’t enough. Especially since Sense8 also came with a pretty high price tag, as mentioned above. Whether this new petition will be able to sway the streaming service remains to be seen, but we don’t imagine them changing their mind. At least, not any time soon. For now, it looks as if the Wachowski’s latest venture will remain on the shelf.
That being said, if you’re hoping for more Sense8, be sure to make your voice heard and sign the petition via the link below. After all, we’ve seen Netflix revive shows in the past, so who knows what may happen a few years down the road?