There's little more disappointing than when a beloved TV show is canceled before its time. Many great TV shows were canceled in 2024, and in recent years, more series have been axed before they have had the chance to prove their quality than ever before. There's a lot of pressure, particularly from streaming services, on modern TV series to be explosively popular from the start and justify their budget and resources, even when the streamer doesn't shell out for a significant marketing campaign.

It's always upsetting when you're worried a TV show won't finish its story without being canceled, and when this does happen, it leaves the narrative on a cliffhanger forever. While dedicated fans have no trouble envisioning theories and possible endings for series that never reach their planned conclusions, this isn't as satisfying as the real thing. Though no series should be canceled before its time, it's even more frustrating when the shows are popular with a wide array of audiences and still have a lot more story to tell.

8 The Recruit (2022–2025)

This Noah Centineo action-thriller had a lot of promise

The Recruit was widely considered Netflix's answer to the immensely popular Reacher and a way to capitalize on the momentum of the record-breaking The Night Agent. Unfortunately, since The Recruit failed to compare to both titles, it was recently axed by Netflix, ending after season 2. Led by Noah Centineo, The Recruit surprised audiences with how fun and dynamic the action-thriller was, rising above the moniker of "dad TV" and becoming an interesting study of the spy genre.

However, Netflix is quick to cancel its original series if they're not performing as well as the streamer might hope, and The Recruit fell victim to this practice. Though there are elements of The Recruit that are on the predictable side, this was part of the fun of the project. If it had been renewed for season 3, there's no reason why The Recruit couldn't have kept getting better and competing with the biggest action titles on TV. Centineo was improving with each season and proving himself to be more than his rom-com roots might suggest.

7 High Fidelity (2020)

This TV show expanded upon the premise of the original movie brilliantly

While the original High Fidelity movie from 2000 is an iconic addition to the music and rom-com genres, the 2020 TV show revival brought the story into the modern era. Starring Zoë Kravitz as Rob, the protagonist, the High Fidelity TV show benefited from telling the story through the lens of a complex female character. Imperfect and, at times, self-involved, Rob was still a great character to spend time with, taking the audience on a romantic odyssey across New York City.

Though High Fidelity had exhausted the premise of the movie after season 1, the series had an exciting opportunity to explore the ing characters further and delve into the vivid world the writers had crafted. Still steeped in a love of music and physical media, High Fidelity appealed to viewers of all kinds and never failed to remain exciting as it chronicled Rob's failed attempts to find love. With the endlessly charming Kravitz leading the cast, High Fidelity could've run for many seasons.

6 I Am Not Okay With This (2020)

Both a great teen TV show and supernatural drama, I Am Not Okay With This could've gone on for much longer

I Am Not Okay With This is a Netflix original TV show that didn't deserve to be canceled, as the streaming service has become notorious for canceling exciting new series before their time. Based on the graphic novel by Charles Forsman, I Am Not Okay With This blends dark elements of the fantasy genre with the emotional highs and lows of adolescence. Starring Sophia Lillis as the protagonist, Sydney, I Am Not Okay With This ended season 1 with a thrilling cliffhanger that would've taken Sydney to new heights as a character.

Great additions to the supernatural teen TV show genre have been few and far between in recent years, especially when they're as emotionally compelling and truthful as I Am Not Okay With This​​​​​​.

Unfortunately, this was not to be, and I Am Not Okay With This season 1 will have to be enough for fans to revisit time and again as the years progress. Great additions to the supernatural teen TV show genre have been few and far between in recent years, especially when they're as emotionally compelling and truthful as I Am Not Okay With This​​​​​​. Hopefully, the comic series might find new life again one day, as it's an enduring story.

5 Westworld (2016–2022)

Every season of Westworld faced challenges, but this didn't mean it should've been canceled

Westworld didn't have an easy time while it was on the air, as it was a popular show to theorize about due to its shocking twists and turns. However, this level of shock factor and plot twists can sometimes be difficult for a series to maintain, and Westworld made some missteps after its iconic first outing. Despite this, Westworld was returning to form by the end of season 4, and it's inarguable that fans of the series deserved to get a satisfying conclusion.

The writers and showrunners were prepared for Westworld season 5, setting up many storylines to be carried over into this installment, but this wasn't to be. Even though there are hopes that HBO might revive the sci-fi Western, it's been over three years since the last season, and season 5 is no closer to being brought to life onscreen. This abrupt and tragic ending will always color the legacy of Westworld, which once seemed like the most promising new show of the 2010s.

4 Everything Sucks! (2018)

This short-lived teen TV show was nostalgic yet fresh

Crafting a teen-driven TV show that is entertaining and fun while also feeling realistic and truthful is a tall order. This makes it all the more impactful when a series like this does come along and even more devastating when it's canceled too soon. Netflix's Everything Sucks! s the ranks of brilliant teen shows like Freaks and Geeks and My So-Called Life that were canceled after season 1 but have maintained their iconography and legacy thanks to their undeniable quality of content.

It's true that Everything Sucks! leans into the inherent nostalgia of its premise, as it's set in the 1990s.

Featuring performances from a young Sydney Sweeney as well as Jahi Di'Allo Winston and Peyton Kennedy, Everything Sucks! treads familiar ground about feeling insecure and out of place in high school. However, it does so with a fresh twist, including fantastic LGBTQ+ representation. It's true that Everything Sucks! leans into the inherent nostalgia of its premise, as it's set in the 1990s. Despite this, it deserved to run for additional seasons and keep finding itself.

3 My Lady Jane (2024)

A romantic fantasy series that has the makings of a cult classic

My Lady Jane is a recent TV show that deserved a lot more attention, as this might have saved the series from being canceled after season 1. The historical fantasy show made waves as soon as it premiered on Prime Video, appealing to fans of fantasy, romance, and historical retellings, as well as any audience member who enjoys some hilarious action and adventure. Despite the outcry from fans and praise from iconic fantasy writers like George R.R. Martin, the show hasn't been brought back.

Canceling any series after just one season always seems like a waste, as the story barely had a chance to get off the ground and show its full potential. Emily Bader and Edward Bluemel starred as the primary protagonists, Jane and Guildford, and while their chemistry is a large part of what made the series shine, the entire ensemble came together to create a show as funny as it was moving. As the years progress, it's likely that My Lady Jane will be considered a cult classic that was well ahead of its time.

2 The OA (2016–2019)

A mindbending sci-fi series that broke boundaries before its cancellation

Brit Marling is brilliant in The OA as the titular character in one of Netflix's most mind-bending projects to date. She's ed by a stellar ensemble cast featuring Jason Isaacs, who has recently risen to prominence once again for his starring role in The White Lotus season 3. Though multiple realities and parallel universes have been popular topics in science fiction and fantasy in recent years, few movies or TV shows were able to tackle this concept with the depth, nuance, and metatextual references that The OA handled with ease.

The OA was tragically canceled after season 2, and the response from fans of the series was overwhelming. Part of this was because the show ended on an unresolved plot point, and it was widely regarded as one of the best TV shows of the 21st century. While The OA season 1 was intriguing and enticing, season 2 raised the stakes and got even better, demonstrating that The OA was a series that would continue evolving and improving. It's interesting and devastating to imagine where The OA might have gone if it had stayed on the air.

1 Mindhunter (2017–2019)

Few crime thrillers have captured our attention the way Mindhunter did

The scale and budget that went into Netflix's original thriller series, Mindhunter​​​​​, contributed to the early cancellation of the phenomenal show. Though there have been plenty of recent projects that touch upon criminal profiling and the hunt for serial killers, Mindhunter was unlike anything else seen on television. With acclaimed director David Fincher serving as one of the executive producers and one of the primary directors, Mindhunter was a near-perfect series.

Though fans and critics have been clamoring for a revival of the series since it went off the air, it's unlikely that we'll ever see Holden, Bill, and Wendy return to our screens. This is a shame, as Mindhunter season 2 concluded with a cliffhanger, demonstrating that one of the killers is still at large. While this open-ended finale reflects the true frustration of working to track down notorious killers, it's clear that Mindhunter had a lot more story to tell and that the terrific ensemble was up to the task of telling it.