In the modern era of streaming entertainment, it genuinely feels that no story is safe from a tragic end. Not the traditional misery of a bittersweet conclusion but an untimely death at the hands of its owners. It’s hard to get invested in anything when a production company can pull the plug at will. Perhaps worse than canceling a show, Disney Plus will remove many of its original series, rendering them inaccessible by most legal means.
Netflix is the usual suspect when it comes to ending shows early. Thestreaming service’s cancelation policyhas earned the ire of thousands of fans and spawned social media firestorms. It’s now such a common occurrence that many viewers are beyond surprise. Disney Plus’s latest decision has inspired shock and anger in its fanbase.
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Disney Plus Is Deleting Several Original Series
On May 26th, Disney Plus and Hulu will remove more than 60 titles from their worldwide catalogs. Some of these works will remain available on other services or physical media, while others will immediately be lost. Hulu is dropping several FXseries likeLittle DemonandY: The Last Man. Disney will be parting withArtemis Fowland theirCheaper by the Dozenremake. Most notably, the service will ditch some of its wholly original content. Both seasons ofThe Mighty Ducks: Game Changerand the only season ofWillowwill be lost. Luckily, both shows can be found on DVD or Blu-ray for those willing to hunt them down, but their first home has abandoned them. These are legacy sequels to well-known IPs. Both shows received agreat deal of promotionbefore their initial release, and they’re being taken away with very little fanfare.
Willowwasn’t a smash hit when it hit the big screen in 1988. The film turned a profit but was panned by many critics. The 2022 series appeared suddenly, and though Disney spent a fair amount of money on marketing, it wasn’t particularly successful. Critics were mixed, though generally a little kinder than they were to the original film. The legacy sequel concept is tried and true at this point, but some memorable names are more of a draw than others. It was praised for its somewhat progressive approach to a queer relationship in a young adult-oriented fantasy series. It’s become unusually common forshows with good LGBTQ+ representationto get the ax.Willowclearly didn’t attract the audience Disney was hoping for. Its typical fate would be a cancelation, and though fans would be sad, Disney would be somewhat justified in setting aside a project that didn’t land. At least the artists who worked hard would still have their creativity honored, and fans could still enjoy it. Removing the entire series and pretending it never happened is a different level of mistreatment.
