In a twist no one saw coming, there will not be a second season of The Society. The Netflix series was renewed for season 2 in July 2019 after the show became a massive hit when it launched in May 2019. However, Netflix announced on Aug. 21 that the show has now been canceled due to “circumstances” stemming from the coronavirus pandemic.
Almost immediately after the news was announced, cast members began sounding off on social media. “Very sad news this morning,” Alex Fitzalan, who played Harry, wrote on Instagram. “Not sure what to say right now but I wanted to share some pics of my time on set for season 1 of The Society. Love you all.”
Kathryn Newton, who played Allie, tweet a photo of a recent Zoom chat she had with her fellow cast members. “I am proud,” she wrote, along with a heart emoji. The hashtag “SaveTheSociety” began trending immediately following the news.
“We’ve made the difficult decision not to move forward with second seasons of The Society and I Am Not Okay With This,” Netflix said in a statement. “We’re disappointed to have to make these decisions due to circumstances created by COVID, and we are grateful to these creators, including: Jonathan Entwistle, Christy Hall, Shawn Levy, Dan Levine, Dan Cohen and Josh Barry at 21 Laps Entertainment for I Am Not Okay With This; Chris Keyser, Marc Webb, and Pavlina Hatoupis for The Society; and all the writers, casts and crews who worked tirelessly to make these shows for our members around the world.”
Both The Society and I Am Not Okay With This were acclaimed among critics and fans on social media. But uncertainty around production dates, balancing the needs and availabilities of a large cast [The Society], and unexpected budget increases due to COVID lead to the decisions.
The Society ended with major cliffhangers that left fans craving season 2. Grizz and his crew discovered new land to grow food, Allie was ousted by Campbell, Harry, and Lexie as New Ham’s leader, and West Ham was seen for the first time since the beginning of the series. Unfortunately, all the questions fans have will be left unanswered.