Netflix cancels First Kill after just one season. The best-selling author of novels like The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and the Shades of Magic series, Victoria Schwab created First Kill for Netflix based on her short story of the same name. Sarah Catherine Hook leads the show as teenage vampire Juliette, the direct matrilineal descendant of Lilith who seeks to make her first kill to earn her place in her vampiric family. As Juliette searches for her prey, she encounters a seemingly naïve girl, Calliope "Cal" Burns (Imani Lewis), and the two develop affection for one another. The situation, however, spirals down when Cal is revealed to be a monster hunter from the Guardian Guild. This prompts a dilemma for the two, as they must choose between continuing their communal legacy or pursuing their feelings for each other. Although First Kill received mixed reviews, the show was reasonably popular on Netflix, remaining on streamer’s weekly Top 10 list for two consecutive weeks after its release.
Now, however, Deadline reports that Netflix has opted to cancel First Kill after season 1. It's been suggested that despite decent ratings, First Kill couldn't crack the viewership numbers the streaming giant required, and it also missed the mark in some other key metrics. Additionally, it has been indicated that First Kill lacked the resilience of a popular Netflix drama, adversely contributing to its fate.
The news comes in the wake of a restructuring of the programming strategy at the streamer, which has become brutal to underperforming shows since reporting a loss of 200,000 subscribers in the first quarter of 2022, followed by another 970,000 in Q2. Teen-centric shows are particularly struggling to survive the service's cancellation bloodbath, as in recent months, Netflix has pulled the plug of some high-profile YA shows, including Grand Army, The Irregulars, and Pretty Smart, with Locke and Key also due to air its final season soon. First Kill is the latest to fall prey to the content cutbacks, although its cancellation is decidedly more heartbreaking, considering that Hook had earlier voiced confidence that First Kill season 2 could happen.
Source: Deadline