‘Away’ Star Hilary Swank Speaks After Netflix Cancels Space Series

Netflix officially canceled Away on Tuesday, and star Hilary Swank was quick to speak out. Swank got on Instagram with a set photo and some final words on the series shortly after the news broke. Fans were devastated, commenting with outrage on her behalf.

Away debuted on Sept. 4 and has now been canceled after just one season, according to a report by Deadline. It was the emotional story of an international crew making the first manned journey to Mars, led by Swank’s character Emma Green. Swank seemed to say goodbye in Green’s voice in part, writing: “Love and hope will always remain my ‘North Star.’ It was an incredible journey my compadres.”

“And thank YOU to all my extraordinary followers who watched and supported our beautiful show. Wish we were showing you Mars! Until the next one,” she concluded with a peace sign emoji.

Swank’s post picked up over 10,000 likes in a matter of hours and plenty of comments from fans as well. For many, this was the first they heard that the show was canceled, and they were devastated. Some even shared their hope that it would continue in some form, perhaps through a fan petition or on another streaming service.

“I hope that somehow it continues!” one fan commented with rocket ship emojis. Another added: “It’s so sad… but I’m so grateful for this Season 1.”

“Oh, I was so looking forward to Mars!” a third person added with a crying emoji.

Away is a near-future science fiction drama created by Andrew Hinderaker and inspired by an Esquire article by Chris Jones. It centered around the Mars Joint Initiative to send a crew to Mars, including a Chinese chemist, a British botanist, a Russian cosmonaut, an Indian medical officer and an American commander from NASA.

The show sets up multiple seasons by planning for a three-year mission, so it might have been three seasons before the cast even set foot on Mars. Sadly, it sounds like they won’t get there now. Netflix billed it as a show “about hope, humanity and how ultimately, we need one another if we are to achieve impossible things.”

Swank co-starred with Josh Charles, Vivian Wu, Mark Ivanir, Ato Essandoh, Ray Panthaki and Talitha Bateman. The series had 10 episodes, all between 44 minutes and 57 minutes long. They are still streaming on Netflix, even if no more installments are coming.