'The OA' Star Jason Isaacs Reveals Original Series Plans Before Netflix Cancellation

The OA may have had a five season plan, but it only managed to get through a fraction of that [...]

The OA may have had a five season plan, but it only managed to get through a fraction of that before Netflix ultimately announced its cancellation last month, leaving dozens of questions and storylines unanswered. In an interview with Collider just weeks after the streaming giant announced that it would not be picking up the fan-favorite series for a third season, series star Jason Isaacs opened up about where future seasons would have taken The OA and what he would have liked to have seen for his character.

"They [Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij] mapped out all five seasons, when they pitched it, originally. They wrote the whole first season on spec, and it took two years to write it. I think that's why the show had such a clearly unique voice," Isaacs told the outlet. "I don't know what they base their decisions on. I respect them and I admire them for commissioning it, in the first place, and I'm so grateful that we got to make two seasons. But yeah, I knew exactly where the third season was going to go, and it's utterly brilliantly."

"When they told me the end of Season 2, I went, 'Wait, guys, are you actually sure? That sounds nuts to me. What can you possibly do afterwards?'" he recalled. "So, they sat me down and told me, and 15 minutes later, my jaw was hanging open. I just couldn't wait to get started making it…Season 2 was so different from Season 1, and Season 3 was going to be very different from Season 2, as well."

Despite the outcry and the push from fans to bring the series back – they have staged protests, hunger strikes, flash mobs, created a petition and even arranged a mass exodus from Netflix – it appears that the book on The OA has closed for good, despite so many unwritten seasons left to tell.

"Netflix canceled it. They are not making any more of The OA," Isaacs said. "Are we all moved and inspired by the fan momentum, and all of the people online, and the people demonstrating? Yeah. Do I know whether that could or couldn't have any effect on it? I don't know. I don't work at Netflix. I don't know if they could change their mind or not. n my fantasy world, I get to do more of The OA."

Both seasons of The OA are available for streaming on Netflix. Unlike with previous cancellations, Netflix reportedly does not have any plans to give the series a wrap-up film.

0comments