Max Cancels ‘Tokyo Vice’ After 2 Seasons

Cancellations are continuing, and Max has axed yet another show. TheWrap reports that crime drama Tokyo Vice has been canceled after two seasons. Based on the memoir Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan by journalist Jake Adelstein, the series centered on an American journalist investigating the yakuza, or members of transnational organized crime, in Tokyo. It premiered in April 2022 on HBO Max and was renewed for a second season that June. Season 2 premiered last February, with the finale dropping in April.

The series was created by J.T. Rogers and stars an ensemble cast that includes Ansel Elgort, Ken Watanabe, Rachel Keller, Hideaki Itō, Shō Kasamatsu, Ella Rumpf, and Rinko Kikuchi. In a statement, executive producers Rogers and Alan Poul said, “Over the last five years, Max has made sure we got to tell our story. They have supported us through thick and thin. Not only did they give us these two seasons, they said yes when we asked to end season one with a series of cliffhangers, and they said yes when we asked for two extra episodes so we could land the plane in the way J.T. had always envisioned.”

The reason for the cancellation is unknown. Tokyo Vice has done pretty well on Max, as it currently has an 89% approval rating and 92% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. The series was initially planned for just two seasons, so that could be the reason. However, Jake Adelstein was apparently unaware that the show would be canceled, mentioning on X (formerly known as Twitter) last month that he was “in the dark” about the series’ future.

“We’re grateful not only to Max but to our partners, Fifth Season, who sold the show around the world and made it a global success story,” Rogers and Poul shared. “They were in the trenches with us always, guaranteeing that we could make the show we wanted to make. The response from both the press and from fans, in particular to Season 2, has been overwhelming. It’s been thrilling to find out how deeply viewers have engaged with our characters and to hear how they are clamoring for more. We know there is more story to tell,” they added. “Of course, we’ll see what the future holds, but we are indeed grateful to have been able to share this story on Max until now.”