February 22, 2023, 3:02 pm | Read time: 4 minutes
After holding out hope for a continuation of “Mindhunter,” it’s now clear–there won’t be a third season. This continues a disappointing trend at Netflix.
After the second season of “Mindhunter” was released in 2019, the project went suspiciously quiet. Many attributed this to the COVID-19 pandemic. More pessimistic voices suspected early on that streaming giant Netflix might cancel the series. Unfortunately, this suspicion has now become a sad reality. Director David Fincher confirmed to the French magazine Le Journal du Dimanche that there will be no third season of “Mindhunter” on Netflix.
No Third Season for “Mindhunter”
Fincher spoke with the magazine during the César Awards, France’s most prestigious film awards. The “Fight Club” and “Gone Girl” director is receiving an honorary award there this year. He clearly states the reason for the cancellation of “Mindhunter”: The series is simply too expensive. He doesn’t blame the streaming service for this.
I am very proud of the first two seasons, but it is an especially expensive series, and in Netflix’s eyes, we didn’t attract a large enough audience to justify such an investment (…). I don’t blame them; they took risks to start the series at all (…). It’s fantastic to work with people capable of bold actions. If our intentions no longer align, we must be honest about it and go our separate ways.
David Fincher, Le Journal du Dimanche
There is no official statement from Netflix on this, which would be unusual anyway. And even though serial killer content is booming–think of “Dahmer” or “You”–the cancellation isn’t entirely surprising. Netflix has a rather strict procedure in this regard. Broadly speaking, productions must recoup their costs, so Netflix measures the success of its content by several parameters. How much is streamed? Do subscribers watch the series to the end? And how many new subscribers join Netflix for this one series or film?
Can the Series Be Saved?
Fans of the series “Mindhunter” are reacting with sadness and disappointment, as are large parts of the press. Originally, five seasons were planned. The most recent second season also ends with a nerve-wracking cliffhanger that will likely never be resolved. In fact, “Mindhunter” is not an isolated case with its cancellation. In recent months, Netflix has prematurely ended several prestige projects, including the German production “1899” and the world record series “The Midnight Club.” The unfortunate trend continues with the cancellation of “Mindhunter.”
However, there are already voices calling for the series to be “saved” by another streaming service. HBO is frequently mentioned. The U.S. network is known for its highly acclaimed and high-quality content–most notably “Game of Thrones,” but also currently “The Last of Us,” “House of the Dragon,” and “Euphoria.”
Unfortunately, it’s fair to say that a scenario where HBO takes over “Mindhunter” is not very likely. But perhaps, given the quality of the series, another streaming service will produce another season. Large parts of the cast and crew have already expressed interest in a continuation.
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What “Mindhunter” Is About
The series depicts the beginnings of the FBI’s investigative method often referred to as profiling in the 1970s. Initially, the idea of the somewhat eccentric Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff) is ridiculed. The young FBI agent wants to create so-called criminal profiles through personal interviews with serial killers. He is then joined by the experienced investigator Bill Tench (Holt McCallany) and psychologist Wendy Carr (Anna Torv). In the second season, the insights gained by the so-called Behavioral Science Unit are increasingly put into practical use.
There were even concrete ideas for how “Mindhunter” season 3 could continue. The plan was for the investigative team to share their findings with a film crew in Hollywood. Several well-known serial killers were already part of the plot, including Charles Manson (played by Damon Herriman) and Ed Kemper (Cameron Britton). Conversations with the inmates would likely have remained an important part of the series.
Sources
- Le Journal du Dimanche (“David Fincher au JDD: ‘En France, vous aimez vraiment le cinéma'” accessed February 22, 2023)
- Gamesradar (“Mindhunter season 3 is a no go at Netflix, says David Fincher,” accessed February 22, 2023)
- Collider (“Exclusive: ‘Mindhunter’ Season 3 Would Have Sent the FBI to Hollywood, Says Andrew Dominik,” accessed February 22, 2023)