The cancellation of ‘The OA’ had spurred almost a revolution of sorts. Have the cries and petitions of the fans worked the magic? Is ‘The OA’ up for season 3 reboot in 2021? Let’s find out!
After almost two and half years of waiting around, season 2 of ‘The OA’ hit the Netflix screens in 2019. However, Netflix soon decided to cancel the show ahead of the third season and it was like taking candy away from a baby. Fans were upset and even started a campaign to save the Netflix sci-fi thriller. Were the efforts of the fans fruitful and is ‘The OA’ getting ready to reboot for season 3 in 2021? That’s what we are here to tell you!
Highlights —
- Netflix cancelled ‘The OA’
- Fans wage a war
- Chances of ‘The OA’ getting a season 3 reboot
Netflix cancelled ‘The OA’
Netflix has made quite a name for itself for cutting out shows in their prime. It’s almost like it is the deadly mafia boss of the Hollywood cartel and once you manage to cross Netflix, you are out of the leagues. Popular shows like ‘Santa Clarita Diet’ and ‘Designated Survivor’ have all suffered under Netflix’s axe, which recently included ‘The OA’. The platform decided to pull the plug on the series just after two seasons. The news was dropped like a bomb as Cindy Holland, the vice president of Netflix, announced the cancellation.
Apparently, Netflix had doubts about whether the sci-fi mystery thriller had the potential to bring in new subscribers for the platform. Frankly, the platform was worried that there wasn’t much in it for them as opposed to the massive budget that usually goes behind sci-fi. While that might have been true, ‘The OA‘ did attract its share of fans who believed that the show was good enough to get a season 3 reboot. Unfortunately, that seems like a distant dream at the moment and Netflix decided to stick with their decision. To say the least, even co-creators Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij felt let down at the sudden axing of the show. Marling took to “Instagram” to express her disappointment. She spoke for her co-creator, Zal Batmanglij, and herself when she admitted to feeling sorry for not having been able to finish the story that they had started. In fact, by her words, she even had a “good cry” on receiving the news.
Fans wage awar
It was not just Marling who was upset by Netflix’s decision, but the fans too. The fans were devastated that Netflix decided to drop the curtains just when things were starting to get interesting. Moreover, the show being cancelled meant being left hanging looking for answers to the sci-fi’s mind-boggling questions. However, the collective strength of the fans is not to be underestimated. Many shows like ‘Lucifer’ and ‘Sense 8’ had been brought back from the dead once the fans stepped upthe demand for their favourite shows to be brought back.
This time around, too, the fans had started a petition on change.org and the trend “#SaveTheOA”on Twitter, hoping that Netflix would reboot ‘The OA’ for season 3. Looking for some closure, a fan wrote,
“Anyone know of any petition to reboot season 3? I can’t shake the feeling of being helpless. We can push Netflix to do something about this cliffhanger. Something similar happened when ‘Sense8’ was cancelling. There was a petition and Sense8 ended up coming back with one last episode for closure”. The revolution of the fans flooded every Netflix account with messages and posts that prompted “#SaveThe OA”.
In fact, fans even tweaked the whole revolution up a notch with a flashmob and a hunger strike!
Chances of ‘The OA’ getting a season 3 reboot
The fan outcry did, of course, catch the attention of the creators. However, no matter how hard the fans might have tried, it didn’t make a difference. Marling took to “Instagram” and explained in a long post that a show needs a lot more to work with than just pure love and passion. She said,
“Your words and images move us deeply. Not because the show must continue, but because for some people its unexpected cancellation begs larger questions about the role of storytelling and its fate inside late capitalism’s push toward consolidation and economies of scale”.
Sadly, there’s no way ‘The OA’ could reboot for season 3 in 2021.
That being said, there’s no need to feel hopeless too. Shows like ‘Dexter’ are making a comeback after years of being AWOL, and there’s no reason why ‘The OA’ couldn’t. Moreover, Jason Isaacs, the actor who played Hap in the show, clarified that the show was originally pitched for five seasons and had some pretty big things planned. So, given that the material is already handy, it could just take a nod from Netflix for ‘The OA’ to reboot with season 3.
Would you like to see a season 3 reboot for ‘The OA’? Let us know in the comments below!
