Hulu’s The First will not see a second, season that is. Deadline Hollywood is reporting that the streaming service has elected not to bring the space exploration show back for another year. The streamer picked that one up directly to series with Sean Penn headlining the cast, and likely hoped it would become another must-watch entry along the lines of their successful The Handmaid’s Tale. But the show, which debuted in September 2018, was criticized for being slow-moving and apparently never developed much of an audience. It did manage to get a decent score from Rotten Tomatoes, but that didn’t help it to garner much buzz. Hulu has not shared the viewership numbers for the series, as is typical with the streaming services, nor has it given a reason for the cancellation. I had thought that this one might get at least one more season because the streaming services tend to give their shows more time to find an audience, but it is expensive to produce and the may have been a deciding factor. I have not seen too much activity on the social networks supporting the show, but I do expect to see an attempt by fans to save the series.
The First follows the first mission to explore Mars, focusing on the astronauts on the voyage as well as the families and ground team back on Earth. It stars Sean Penn, Natascha McElhone, LisaGay Hamilton, Hannah Ware, Keiko Agena, and James Ransone and comes from House of Cards creator Beau Willimon.
As we head into Mid-Season, expect to hear word on more Fall shows that have wrapped up like Nightflyers, Origin, and Stan Against Evil, and The CW could be making its blanket renewal statement at any time now. Be sure to stay tuned to this site and the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site for breaking news as well as the latest ratings results.
