Netflix Has Canceled ‘Santa Clarita Diet’ After Three Seasons

Netflix has pulled the plug on the delightful, hilarious, and brilliant Santa Clarita Diet only a few weeks after releasing the show’s third season. While the series had a somewhat rocky start, it soon found its groove and was one of the most beloved series on the streaming platform. Unfortunately, like One Day at a Time, Daredevil, Bloodline, Travelers, and several others before it, Santa Clarita Diet fell subject to Netflix’s three-season curse.

Netflix released the following statement:

“The world had never known a ‘zom-com’ until Santa Clarita Diet, and we’re indebted to creator Victor Fresco for bringing this idea to Netflix. To their endless credit, the incredible Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant were totally game, with an uncanny knack for comedy that brought Sheila and Joel Hammond to vibrant life, even though one of them was undead. We’re grateful to Victor, Drew, and Timothy, along with fellow executive producers Tracy Katsky, Aaron Kaplan, Chris Miller and Ember Truesdell and the terrific cast, including Liv Hewson and Skyler Gisondo, and crew for three hilarious seasons for Netflix members to discover for years to come.”

The good news is, as he said in a statement, Timothy Olyphant will continue to make the show, even if no one is filming. “I loved working on this show. I’m going to continue coming in and doing scenes. If they don’t want to film it, that’s up to them.”

Netflix does not provide ratings information, so we’re not entirely sure why the streaming network decided to pull the plug. It was a frequently discussed series on social media, and at least in my social media bubble, a very popular show. Deadline speculates that it’s because after three seasons, the way Netflix structures its contracts makes these series more expensive, and therefore Santa Clarita Diet became cost prohibitive.

Fans have already taken to Twitter in an effort to change Netflix’s mind with the #SaveSantaClaritaDiet hashtag.

There is a certain irony in that last tweet, given that Netflix likely has so much money tied up in licensing old shows like Friends and The Office that the streaming platform can’t afford to renew some of its best original series. It’s a shame. In the meantime, however, we can still see Timothy Olyphant on our television screens soon, in the Deadwood movie on HBO.