Why did Netflix cancel The Irregulars? The first installment of the mystery crime drama earned favorable reviews and season 2 was rumored to have been greenlit prior to the series premiere. Yet, Netflix canceled The Irregulars after season 1. Clearly, something went wrong in the month after the March 2021 release. Based on Netflix's history of cancelations, The Irregulars and its cast and crew may have been the victims of circumstance and unfortunate timing.
The Irregulars seemingly had massive pop-culture appeal because of its literary source material and quirky anachronisms. The storyline was inspired by the Baker Street Irregulars from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's novels and follows the title characters as they investigate crimes in their native London. The cases tackled by The Irregulars' star team are often violent and disturbing, in addition to quirkily supernatural.
In Tom Bidwell's Netflix adaptation, the protagonists are hired by John Watson (Royce Pierreson) instead of his legendary partner, Sherlock Holmes (Henry Lloyd-Hughes). The Irregulars' cast of characters includes Thaddea Graham as Bea, Darci Shaw as Jessie, McKell David as Spike, Jojo Macari as Billy, and Harrison Osterfield as Prince Leopold, the Duke of Albany. After the show debuted, it was reported that The Irregulars season 2 was greenlit based on the popularity of Enola Holmes, and the critically-acclaimed series ultimately made Netflix's trending title list. Despite this, as people now know, The Irregulars was canceled.
Netflix Canceled The Irregulars
Netflix officially canceled The Irregulars on May 4, 2021, but didn't provide a specific reason. The decision came approximately six weeks after the March 26 series premiere, which aligns with the streaming service's usual timeline for announcements. Technically, however, Netflix never officially announced that The Irregulars season 2 had been ordered. Most likely, there are two main reasons why The Irregulars was canceled prior to a second installment: either the viewing numbers weren't impressive or scheduling conflicts halted the production.
Why Netflix Didn't Renew The Irregulars For Season 2
Assuming that all of the main cast members wanted to move forward with The Irregulars season 2, Netflix may have canceled the series because it didn't project to be a multi-season hit. The first installment does indeed end with conflict resolution and the protagonists seemingly preparing for new gigs with Mr. Watson, but the streaming numbers over several weeks may have shown that locked-down streamers weren't fully invested in The Irregulars' eight-episode narrative. It's impossible to say why Netflix canceled the Sherlock Holmes series The Irregulars for certain, as the streaming giant relies on a complex algorithm and data points to determine "worth," none of which they make available to the public. As industry norms continue to change during the COVID-19 era, Netflix may have decided to be more selective about its funding.
The cancelation of The Irregulars season 2 may be shocking to fans, but there's indeed a precedent in place at Netflix. The streaming service canceled the critical hit Tuca & Bertie after season 1 (presumably because of low viewing numbers), while the popular science fiction show The OA was canceled after season 2 and left fans with an unresolved cliffhanger. Even the popular Netflix show Mindhunter seems to be done after two seasons, apparently because of creator David Fincher's scheduling conflicts. As for The Irregulars, the Netflix show resonated reasonably well with critics, but Netflix clearly saw a significant dip in streaming numbers after its initial release.
Why Does Netflix Keep Canceling Fan-Favorite Shows After One Season?
Netflix recently went through a period of canceling a range of fan-favorite shows, but why? Series like the women's wrestling show GLOW and the widely-viewed The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina got the ax, not even being allowed to finish out their final storylines. Random hit shows like Archive 81 and She's Gotta Have It were also canceled despite significant fan engagement. Netflix did blame random factors for the mass exodus of shows, such as the COVID-19 pandemic affecting production schedules, but that hasn't stopped some scrapped series, such as the canceled One Day at a Time, from being optioned by other networks. It seems that Netflix's cancelations are instead indicative of a larger problem: the streaming service isn't listening to its viewers. Sure, shows get canceled for poor ratings all of the time, but people aren't able to see the numbers behind Netflix's so-called science. By not listening to their viewers, Netflix keeps canceling popular shows like The Irregulars long before their time has run out. In the end, this could lead to a massive migration of customers to other streaming platforms as they follow their favorite properties elsewhere.