This news comes as a bit of a shock but Netflix has made the announcement that Chilling Adventures of Sabrina has been canceled. The series will return later this year with "part four" of its run but that's the last spell the show will be casting.
This is the typical lifespan of most Netflix series but I'm still a bit surprised. I thought this series was very popular at the streamer but it does follow a particular pattern for them. Ozark was renewed for a fourth & final season last week and Dead To Me was renewed for a third & final season just this week. The timing on this must be especially rough for showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa whose other Riverdale offshoot, Katy Keene, was canceled last week after only one season.
Sabrina, like Riverdale, was originally created for broadcast. Riverdale was first developed for Fox and moved to The CW, while Sabrina was designed as a spinoff for The CW before it moved to Netflix with a two-season, 20-episode order. The series moved to Netflix after Riverdale became a monster hit for The CW thanks in part to new audiences finding the show's first season on Netflix and returning to the broadcast network for its second. Aguirre-Sacasa still has a lucrative overall deal with producers Warner Bros. TV and the fifth season of Riverdale, his first series, is coming back to The CW in 2021. Aguire-Sacasa had this to say about the show coming to an end:
"Working on Chilling Adventures of Sabrina has been an incredible honor from Day One. The cast, beginning with Kiernan as everyone’s favorite teen witch, has been an absolute joy. I am beyond thankful to the crew, writers, editors, assistants, and everyone for pouring so much love into this dark dream of a show. I’m also grateful to our partners at Netflix, Warner Bros., Berlanti Television, and Archie Comics for letting us tell the story we wanted to tell, the way we wanted to tell it. We can’t wait for everyone to see Part Four."
Sabrina does exist in the same universe as Riverdale but it's unclear if any of the stars from Sabrina will transition over. On the show, as her 16th birthday nears, Sabrina must choose between the witch world of her family and the human world of her friends. The series stars Kiernan Shipka, Miranda Otto, Richard Coyle, Ross Lynch, Lucy Davis, Chance Perdomo, Michelle Gomez, Jaz Sinclair, Lachlan Watson, Gavin Leatherwood, Tati Gabrielle, Adeline Rudolph & Abigail Cowen.
Are YOU sad to see Chilling Adventures of Sabrina go?