Netflix’s “The Get Down” Canceled After One Season
Bad news for those waiting with bated breath to find out whether or not The Get Down leads Zeke and Mylene will end up together: We may never know.
After only one season, which was delivered in two installments, the Netflix show has been canceled, as The Hollywood Reporter notes. In a Facebook post, creator Baz Luhrmann detailed exactly what went wrong with the show that was set in the Bronx and followed a group of friends pursuing careers in music during the peak of disco and the onset of hip-hop in the 1970s. As it turns out, it has more to do with him than anything else.
Luhrmann is apparently in such demand that he has too many projects in the works to focus on a TV show. “When I was asked to come to the center of The Get Down to help realize it, I had to defer a film-directing commitment for at least two years,” he writes. “This exclusivity has understandably become a sticking point for Netflix and Sony, who have been tremendous partners and supporters of the show. It kills me that I can’t split myself into two and make myself available to both productions. I feel so deeply connected to all those who I have worked and collaborated with on this remarkable experience.”
While he doesn’t outline other reasons in his note, instead thanking the “stellar” cast — which was both inclusive and featured a number of rising stars like Jaden Smith — there are a number of other potential contributing factors in the cancellation. As The Hollywood Reporter outlines, the show didn’t come cheap, with a budget of reportedly $120 million, according to Variety. Additionally, production delays reportedly created issues for the actors, who were allegedly being held under option contracts.
While there won’t be an official season two of The Get Down, that doesn’t mean all hope is lost. Don’t be surprised if the show returns outside of TV in another form — perhaps a concert. “All sorts of things have been thrown around for the future… even a stage show (can you imagine that? I can, concert version anyone? Next summer? Just saying),” writes Luhrmann. “As for the real future of the show, the spirit of The Get Down, and the story it has begun to tell… it has its own life. One that lives on today and will continue to be told somewhere, somehow, because of you, the fans and the supporters. Humbled and honored, and to quote Mylene’s beautiful ballad, ‘I’ll see you on the other-side….’ ”
Related: Meet the Singing, Rapping, Breakdancing Young Stars of “The Get Down,” Netflix’s Hip-Hop Spectacular
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