‘Santa Clarita Diet’ Fans Still Can’t Process Netflix Cancellation, Twitter User Wants Them ‘Thanos Snapped’

Netflix officially canceled Santa Clarita Diet on Friday, leaving many fans furious.

Fans have enjoyed three seasons of Santa Clarita Diet, a zombie-themed comedy series starring Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant. This week, Netflix announced that the show will not be returning for another season, just under a month after the latest batch of episodes dropped.

“The world had never known a ‘zom-com’ until Santa Clarita Diet, and we’re indebted to creator Victor Fresco for bringing this idea to Netflix,” read a statement from Netflix published by The Hollywood Reporter.

“To their endless credit, the incredible Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant were totally game, with an uncanny knack for comedy that brought Sheila and Joel Hammond to vibrant life, even though one of them was undead. We’re grateful to Victor, Drew, and Timothy, along with fellow executive producers Tracy Katsky, Aaron Kaplan, Chris Miller and Ember Truesdell and the terrific cast, including Liv Hewson and Skyler Gisondo, and crew for three hilarious seasons for Netflix members to discover for years to come.”

The response was real outrage, as fans felt they had been left hanging by the show. Many called out the streaming service for stringing them along and then pulling the rug out from under them, feeling that shows like this should get to wrap up their stories before getting abruptly canceled.

Twitter has become a popular outlet for Netflix rage, as the service’s official accounts sometimes engage with fans depending on the context. Here is a look at how Twitter felt about Netflix canceling Santa Clarita Diet.

Snap

First off, perhaps Netflix should have picked a different weekend for the cancellation, as many fans have Avengers on their minds. This led a few critics to call on Thanos to snap his fingers on the streaming executives who canceled the Santa Clarita Diet.

Compassion

Many fans shared the sentiment that Netflix was being insensitive and even cruel by canceling a show in the middle of a story. They felt that the streaming service should have given the creators a chance to wrap up their existing stories before cutting them off altogether, giving fans a sense of closure as well.

“You know, if the [Netflix] way ahead is three seasons and then cancel, then they should have the compassion for the creators and their audience that they finish the show and not just drop it,” one person tweeted. “I’m distraught over Santa Clarita Diet.”

Many industry-savvy critics are now whispering that the cancellation after the third season is some kind of strategy Netflix is developing, and some have even gone so far as to say that they will not commit to watching a show until it gets picked up for a fourth season.

Cliffhanger

For other fans, the outrage hung entirely on the question of what happens next. They begged Netflix to let the creators answer their big questions, as they did with Sense8. So far, there is no word on such an effort.

Network

A few fans even delivered what could be the greatest insult to a service like Netflix: comparing it to a TV network. The streaming app may have revolutionized the entertainment industry, but fans reason that it will begin to feel like a network or a cable outlet if it begins to leave shows hanging without warning.

“Netflix are becoming like any other Network,” one fan wrote. “They are starting to have a library of unfinished shows and who wants to watch that.”

Lisencing Outrage

The nature of Netflix’s service allows fans to take all of its renewals and cancellations into view at once, and so business decisions are often compared. To many fans, Netflix’s continued spending on expensive licensing agreements at the cost of original programming like Santa Clarita Diet is disappointing.

Last year, Netflix reportedly paid $100 million to keep Friends in its catalogue after fans bemoaned its removal. The deal was likely temporary, however, as WarnerMedia is developing its own streaming app and it will undoubtedly want the show back to drive subscriptions. Netflix executives have said that Friends will most likely be gone at the end of 2019.

Dropped Subscription

Some fans had a simple solution to the cancellation of Santa Clarita Diet: leaving Netflix. The users decided to vote with their dollars and head for a service with a more stable catalogue and a lower subscription price.

“I’m heading over to Hulu since Netflix cancelled Santa Clarita Diet,” one user wrote.

Cliffhanger (pt. 2)

While some fans were angry at Netflix for canceling a show in the middle of a cliffhanger, others wondered why certain show ended their seasons with cliffhangers in the first place. They pointed out that, in the age of streaming, this might not be necessary anymore and could actually just break the hearts of fans when cancellation was a possibility.

“So I get Netflix is the real buttheads for canceling Santa Clarita Diet but it does speak to the problem I have with shows that insist on ending every season with a cliffhanger,” one person wrote. “It’s just kind of a mean set up for fans if you don’t know that you are going to get a next one.”

“But honestly screw Netflix sometimes,” the same person added. “I get an email today about them bumping up the price so they can ‘keep bringing the stuff our customers want’ and then they cancel one of my favorite originals… k.”

Worse Shows

Finally, as always fans questioned some of the other original series Netlix has renewed while their favorite got canceled. These are subjective opinions, of course, although sometimes the decisions do seem bizarre. For example, Santa Clarita Diet fans pointed out that their beloved “zom-com” got the same number of seasons as the controversial teen drama 13 Reasons Why.