Will there be a fourth season of Marvel's Runaways on Hulu? Premiering on the streaming service in 2017, Runaways debuted at a time when Marvel TV was as busy as ever and expanding its reach. The first season was a moderate success - even with a strange release schedule - as audiences got to know Karolina Dean (Virginia Gardner), Nico Minoru (Lyrica Okano), Chase Stein (Gregg Sulkin), Alex Wilder (Rhenzy Feliz), Gert Yorkes (Ariela Barer), and Molly Hernandez (Allegra Acosta). For the last two seasons, they have been attempting to stop their parents - and the powerful aliens that they served.
Now that season 3 of Runaways has arrived, fans of the series can see where the story goes after the season 2 cliffhanger. Lingering questions like who is the fourth Gibborim host are answered early on, while Morgan le Fay (Elizabeth Hurley) communicates with Nico in small doses. Once she is released from the Dark Dimension, it's up to the Runaways to save the world from her takeover. With a little help from Tandy Bowen aka Dagger (Olivia Holt) and Tyrone Johnson aka Cloak (Aubrey Joseph), the Runaways and their parents believe they'll be able to defeat Morgan when the time comes.
They are successful in stopping Morgan, but it comes at a cost, as Gert dies from an injury sustained during the confrontation. But, that isn't where Runaways ends. A time travel-focused finale has a future version of Chase sacrifice his life in the place of the girl he loves. The season comes to a close with the Runaways together and happy, but a note left by a future version of Alex teases what could be in store for a fourth season. However, that cliffhanger will go unanswered.
Runaways Season 3 Is The Final Season
Marvel and Hulu officially announced prior to the release of Runaways season 3 that it will be the end of the series. Unfortunately, this news did not come as much of a surprise given Marvel TV's recent activity. This came on the heels of every Marvel TV Netflix show ending, the cancelation of Cloak & Dagger after two seasons, and Agents of SHIELD confirming the upcoming seventh season will be the end. Runaways ending in this fashion means it is tied with Daredevil and Jessica Jones for the second-longest-running Marvel TV series at three seasons. No other show made it past two.
Why Runaways Season 4 Isn't Happening
The reason why Runaways - and many other Marvel shows - isn't moving forward is a bit complicated. Although the show itself worked, analytics for the first two seasons shared by Business Insider revealed that less than 1 million people tuned in during the first week of each season's release. Without high viewing numbers, Hulu may have already had cold feet about continuing Runaways with a fourth season - even as they're filming a new series, Helstrom. But, there is also the recent restructuring of Marvel Entertainment that now has put Marvel TV under the control of Marvel Studios' Kevin Feige. It's unknown if he had any role to play in the cancelation of Runaways, but the expected departure of Jeph Loeb may have left the show with a limited future.
What Runaways Being Canceled Means For The Story
Without a fourth season of Runaways, the good news for fans is that the season 3 finale largely works as a conclusion to the series. The Runaways have successfully saved the world a few times and, in some cases, have repaired relationships with their parents. The only part of the ending that will leave fans wanting more is the note 2028 Alex left for his 2019 self. This note told him to infiltrate Wilder Innovators, hide Victor Mancha, and then kill Nico. Unfortunately, fans will never get the answer to what Alex does with this note and information, leaving a bit of a cliffhanger on Runaways as the credits roll on the series.