HBO Max Cancels Sci-Fi Series After 2 Seasons

HBO Max announced on Friday that it has not renewed Raised by Wolves for Season 3. The sci-fi drama was executive produced by genre legend Ridley Scott, who also directed several episodes. Many fans were surprised to hear that the show was canceled after such a short run, and some are actively petitioning for it to be saved.

“While we are not proceeding with a third season of Raised by Wolves, we are beyond grateful to the stellar cast and crew, our creators Aaron Guzikowski, Ridley Scott, David W. Zucker, and the entire team at Scott Free Productions, for their beautiful artistry and unique ability to immerse fans into the world of Kepler-22b,” read a statement from HBO Max published by Deadline on Friday. Raised by Wolves premiered in the fall of 2020 and returned in February of this year. It concluded its second season on March 17, 2022, never realizing that that would be its series finale.

Raised by Wolves is set in an indeterminate future where the Earth has been destroyed by a great war and humanity has been scattered to the stars. It centers on a fledgling colony on the planet Kepler-22b, where human children are being raised by two androids named Father and Mother. They were played by Abubakar Salim and Amanda Collin, respectively.

The show was created by Aaron Guzikowski, who was previously best known for creating the TV series The Red Road. At the time of this writing, Guzikowski and Scott do not seem to have commented publicly on the cancellation, but Salim made several posts about it on Twitter. He asked for fans’ help to draw attention to the show and try to get it renewed or perhaps revived elsewhere.

“It’s not surprising, especially after the news of the mergers and what is happening at Warner, that a lot of shows are not having their stories finished,” the actor wrote. He continued that he believes “there is hope” for the show to be renewed. “You see, we’re in a unique position: we have a fully fleshed out and planned storyline, a Goliath of a production team behind us, incredible reception from critics and reviewers alike, and most crucially, a community base that is so strong internationally, it can not be ignored.”

“As we speak, Scott Free and the creatives are pushing for the show to be continued in other homes – sharing the reception and pull of the show to other storytellers,” Salim continued. “There is no denying that we are in a time where the power of a communities voice can make change. There’s been many instances we’ve collectively witnessed where this has happened, few that spring to mind is The Expanse, Top Boy as well as with good ol Synder… So I’m asking for action.”

Raised by Wolves Seasons 1 and 2 are streaming now on HBO Max. Right now, the streamer has made the cancellation announcement official, and no other platforms have stepped up to claim the show publicly.