The Disney+ streaming service got its start in Fall of 2019 and at that time looked like a promising home for sci fi and fantasy television, especially shows linked to the Star Wars universe and the MCU. And while the streamer has put out some promising entries in those franchises, it has not ventured very far beyond that territory and the few non-Star Wars, non-Marvel entries it has experimented with have not lasted long. In addition, Disney+ is feeling the impact of cost overruns and the Peak TV crunch could lead to some changes at the service.
Can Disney+ Move Beyond Star Wars and Marvel?
Disney+ kicked off with the premiere of The Mandalorian and that was followed not long after by the final season of Star Wars: The Clone Wars (allowing that one to wrap up its storylines after initially getting cancelled when Disney bought the Star Wars franchise). The streamer was then hit by COVID-related production shutdowns which delayed the arrival of several planned Marvel projects. But by 2021, Wandavision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki, and What If . . . ? had arrived and the streamer was moving full speed ahead with the MCU. But while the earlier entries were mostly well received, diminishing returns started to set in as The Book of Boba Fett, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Moon Knight, She-Hulk, and more received a mixed reception at best.
During this time, Disney+ dabbled with some other properties but did not find much success among genre entries. The younger-skewing The Mysterious Benedict Society managed to produce two seasons before getting cancelled and the fantasy series Willow (a sequel to the 1988 George Lucas film) received one season (and very little promotion) before the streamer gave up on it. Percy Jackson and the Olympians is set for a December 2023 debut and that one does have some franchise potential. But beyond that, Disney+ remains mostly locked into Star Wars and the MCU even though its success has been spotty so far with those properties over the last couple of years.
Will Cost-Cutting and the Peak TV Crunch Lead to a Course Change?
Just as we have seen from other streaming services, Disney+ has felt the pressure from the expansive budgets of original programming and has resorted to cost-cutting measures. A lot of money has been thrown at scripted productions to draw in subscriptions, but the return on investment is just not there. Willow was cancelled by the service pretty quickly when it failed to draw much of an audience, and it has been removed from streaming to count as a write-down (drawing a rebuke from the show’s star). The Mysterious Benedict Society was also cancelled and removed as the streamer went through a scramble to get costs under control. Disney boss Bob Iger even admitted that the service needed to slow down on the Star Wars and MCU shows, focusing more on quality than quantity (read: they want to spend less money, no corporate exec is interested in quality).
So even though Disney+ got off to a promising start and produced some notable entries in its major franchises, the bottom line is not favorable at this point and it is likely there are changes on the horizon. For the most part, that will probably mean fewer Star Wars and MCU shows each year which is not necessarily a bad thing. And if Percy Jackson takes off, Disney execs will probably look to mine other properties that the Mouse House owns. (Maybe they need to reconsider that Nautilus show that they dumped?) The Disney+ service itself should remain intact as the television counterpoint to the movie-making side of the company. And it seems likely that the streamer will continue to be a source of regular output for Disney properties. But expect less in the way of mega-budget productions and perhaps fewer scripted originals per year.
A Look at the Sci Fi and Fantasy Shows on Disney+
Disney+ has put out a fair number of shows during its first four years (nineteen genre entries at current count), but not many have lasted very long. The Mandalorian is headed into its fourth (and possibly last season), but after that, no show has survived beyond two seasons (though Loki looks like it has a good shot at a third year). The streamer has also been guilty of trying to retrofit shows into mini-series when they did not perform as expected. While Wandavision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Secret Invasion, and a few others were definitely close-ended, Ms. Marvel, She-Hulk, Willow, and more could have continued if viewership was stronger (and I don’t accept the mini-series tag on those). In fact, over the last two seasons, Disney+ has cancelled 63% of its sci fi/fantasy shows after just one season (including some it tried to later claim were “limited series”).
Following is the list of sci fi and fantasy shows that have debuted on Disney+ since it launched, and for shows that have been renewed the upcoming season is included in the count.
| Series | Start | Seasons | Cancelled/Ended |
| The Mandalorian | 2019-20 | 4 | N |
| Loki | 2020-21 | 2 | N |
| The Mysterious Benedict Society | 2020-21 | 2 | Y |
| Star Wars: Bad Batch | 2020-21 | 2 | N |
| Star Wars: Visions | 2021-22 | 2 | N |
| What If | 2021-22 | 2 | N |
| Ahsoka | 2022-23 | 1 | N |
| The Book of Boba Fett | 2021-22 | 1 | Y |
| The Falcon and The Winter Soldier (Mini-Series) | 2020-21 | 1 | Y |
| Hawkeye (Mini-Series) | 2021-22 | 1 | Y |
| Just Beyond | 2021-22 | 1 | Y |
| Moon Knight (Mini-Series) | 2021-22 | 1 | Y |
| Ms. Marvel | 2021-22 | 1 | Y |
| Obi-Wan Kenobi (Mini-Series) | 2021-22 | 1 | Y |
| Secret Invasion (Mini-Series) | 2022-23 | 1 | Y |
| She-Hulk: Attorney at Law | 2022-23 | 1 | Y |
| Star Wars: The Clone Wars | 2019-20 | 1 | Y |
| WandaVision (Mini-Series) | 2020-21 | 1 | Y |
| Willow | 2022-23 | 1 | Y |
Be sure to follow the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site for breaking news and updates. And for the latest news and discussions on sci fi and fantasy television, follow r/SciFiTV
Follow our Sci Fi TV Schedule for all the currently airing and upcoming sci fi and fantasy television shows, and you can see the premieres for all the upcoming genre entries at this link.
One of the big problems is the lack of talented writers in this period of bloated self-congratulatory woke sci-fi & fantasy genre poseurs. Science fiction used to succeed based on the quality of stories and the sense of wonder and discovery they engendered. Look at the greats: Outer Limits, Twilight Zone, Original Star Trek – these shows are still enjoyable 60+ years later whereas most of what has been produced in the last 10-15 years (with some notable exceptions like the Expanse and For All Mankind) is a slog to watch even the first time (don’t even talk about repeat viewings).