Helstrom has been canceled after having released one season for the Marvel series. Hulu shortly confirmed the news days after Disney announced plans for 10 new Marvel series for its streaming service. The show followed Damon (Tom Austen) and Ana Helstrom (Sydney Lemmon), siblings and children of a renowned serial killer, trying to track down the worst of humanity. It is loosely based on the comics characters of the same name, sans one ‘L’ in their last name. The Helstrom children are originally offspring of Satan, but the show altered that, including some elements of their book counterparts.
Marvel originally planned a line-up of Marvel shows for Hulu spearheaded by Jeff Loeb, head of the now-defunct Marvel TV. Helstrom was picked up to series in May 2019 alongside a live-action Ghost Rider. However, Hulu decided not to continue Ghost Rider after creative differences with the project. This left Helstrom the only drama successfully making through the tough cut.
After recently premiering its first season this year, Helstrom is officially one-and-done for Hulu. The cancellation was already expected following Loeb’s exit last fall, which saw Marvel’s TV division folded into Kevin Feige’s studio unit. This paved the way for Marvel shows to fall under Disney+ exclusives as part of the integration of expanded MCU.
Helstrom aired for only one season on the streamer. It now joins the likes of Marvel’s Runaways, which ran for three seasons, and the Ghost Rider series, which never got off the ground. Nevertheless, Hulu still has two animated Marvel series, M.O.D.O.K., and Hit-Monkey set up for its followers.
Why was the Helstrom series canceled?
Despite being in the works for a few years, Helstrom was pretty much dead on the hype. For one, it was set in a separate reality from the MCU, further isolating it from other Marvel properties. Its poor critical reception only made it worse, with many saying the show stripped the characters of what made them great.
While it’s unfortunate, it’s the same case with the cancellation of Marvel’s deal with Netflix for series. The studio clearly expressed disinterest in continuing shows that exist outside of MCU or ones that are loosely related to it. Furthermore, Marvel is now integrating all of their properties under one umbrella. Hence, it came pretty obvious that Helstrom will no longer take off further nor be integrated into the MCU.
Fans of live-action Marvel fare need not fret for long though. Marvel Studios under Kevin Feige has a range of series in the works for Disney+ featuring familiar characters from the MCU. First up is WandaVision, set to debut on January 15, then The Falcon and Winter Soldier on March 19. Loki will then follow in May. Others include Hawkeye, She-Hulk, Ms. Marvel, and Moon Knight.