Netflix cancels Altered Carbon

Netflix cancels its sci-fi epic Altered Carbon after two seasons, the latest genre show to fall in the wake of the pandemic driving up production costs.

After two seasons, Netflix has cancelled its opulent cyberpunk drama Altered Carbon, Deadline reports.

Altered Carbon, based on the book of the same name by Richard K. Morgan, followed the adventures of far future freedom fighter Takeshi Kovacs, who was played by Joel Kinnaman in the first season and Avengers veteran Anthony Mackie in the second. That was one of the gimmicks of the show: it took place in a dystopian future where people could change bodies, or “sleeves,” as easily as we put on a new pair of pants. Takeshi was in love with Quellcrist Falconer, the leader of the elite fighting force he was a part of before he first changed sleeves, but now his quest to find her is over.

This news comes on the heels of the announcement that Showtime will not be renewing Penny Dreadful: City of Angels for another season. And Netflix just announced that it wouldn’t be making sophomore seasons of the shows I Am Not Okay With This, about a teenage girl with unique powers; and The Society, about a group of teenagers transported to a version of their New England town where there are no parents.

It’s hard not to think that the coronavirus pandemic has something to do with a lot of these decisions. All of these shows were expensive to make, and Altered Carbon more expensive than most. Some of them had found an audience, but not huge audiences, which must have made the prospect of going back into production with increased safety procedures seem pretty daunting.

We’ll see if the bleeding continues.

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