In a statement, Cindy Holland, vice president of Netflix Original Content, said that the story is “coming to an end.”
“It is everything we and the fans dreamed it would be,” she said, “bold, emotional, stunning, kick ass, and outright unforgettable. Never has there been a more truly global show with an equally diverse and international cast and crew, which is only mirrored by the connected community of deeply passionate fans all around the world.”
Sense8, which tells the story of a diverse group of characters from around the world who find that they are connected to one another in strange and cosmic ways, ran for two seasons, the second of which debuted on May 5. Created by Lana and Lily Wachowski, the series has been lauded for its presentation of LGBTQ characters and themes. Salon called the series “arguably the most progressive sci-fi show ever,” In addition to the two seasons, there was also a two-hour Christmas special released last December.
While Netflix does not release viewer data, one can only infer that, despite its positive reception, viewer numbers may be low for the second season. The long wait may also have something to do with the decision: Season 1 debuted almost two years ago. But the main catalyst was likely the high production costs of the series, which were reported to be at about $9 million per episode. The episodes are shot on location in several countries around the world — that included a total of 16 cities and 13 countries for the first two seasons.
Sense8 joins several other high-profile originals from Netflix to have recently ended their runs. Last month, The Get Down, another expensive series at a reported $16 million per episode to produce, was canceled, and last December, it was confirmed that Marco Polo would be ending after two seasons. Popular Netflix original series Bloodline also ended after its third season, which became available for streaming last week.
Just prior to the official cancellation of Sense8, many fans had suspected that the show would not be returning, sparking the hashtag #renewsense8.
