Netflix has decided not to renew its hip-hop musical drama “The Get Down,” a hugely ambitious show from “Romeo + Juliet” director Baz Luhrmann, for a second season. The streaming service recently renewed its hit teen suicide drama “13 Reasons Why” for a Season 2, but not Luhrmann’s ‘70s-set musical show.
Decision comes after premiering latest episodes
“The Get Down” has just premiered Part 2 of its first season. Each part was six episodes long making for a 12-episode Season 1. Netflix have used the time since the premiere to weigh up the viewing figures – who has returned to see the show who watched Part 1 or who even watched Part 1 to begin with – with the gargantuan cost of the show.
Season 1 cost Netflix $120 million to produce! That’s enough to make a Marvel superhero movie. Well, not “The Avengers,” but maybe “Ant-Man 2.”
Most Netflix series do get a second season, so this is a rare case, but then again most Netflix series cost far less to produce and are far more popular than “The Get Down.” The show is set in South Bronx, New York City, in the disco and R&B era of the 1970s, and reproducing the style and feel of a bygone period of history is always expensive.
‘The Get Down’ always faced behind-the-scenes struggles
Production of “The Get Down” was always fraught with troubles. All through the writing and filming stages, changes in staff led to all kinds of difficulties and delays.
The delays were so bad that the first season had to be split to air in two parts. No one watched the show anyway, it seems, since a Season 2 isn’t on the cards, so it was all a big waste of everyone’s time and money.
Interviewed by Vulture recently, Luhrmann seemed to indicate that “The Get Down” Season 2 was inevitable, stating that he and the team had “already developed the opening of the next season” (so that really was a waste of time, because that’s going nowhere), saying that with regards to Netflix’s decision to renew the show, “there has been no question about that.” Turns out he was right, but on Netflix’s end, it was no question about cancelling the show, whereas Luhrmann thought it was no question about renewing it and throwing another $120 million or more at it.
Baz Luhrmann reacts
Luhrmann reacted to the cancellation of “The Get Down” on Facebook today, acting like there only wasn’t a second season renewal because he couldn’t commit to it. Right. He said it became “a sticking point” in the decision to cancel the show, as he has instead turned his focus towards making a new movie.
