To the Shock of Many, Freeform’s Shadowhunters Is Canceled

Shadowhunters has been canceled much to the surprise of the fans and the cast members.

The show, which has been on the air for three seasons, is coming to an end after an upcoming two-hour finale event that, according to TV Line, will air in 2019. The announcement came out yesterday.

“We are very proud of Shadowhunters, a series that broke new ground in the genre world and became a fan favorite,” the network said in a statement. “However, along with our partners at Constantin, we reached the very difficult decision not to renew the show for a fourth season. But as big supporters and fans ourselves, Freeform insisted on and championed the filming of a special two-part finale that would give devoted fans a proper ending.”

Despite the popular fanbase, according to TV Line, the show is not doing well in the ratings. “Shadowhunters is averaging barely 400,000 total weekly viewers, down sharply from Season 2 and ranking fifth ranking all current Freeform programs.”

At the same time, there seemed to have been no heads up to the executive producers or anyone else involved behind the scenes working on the show.

Hail and farewell, Angels… 🖤 #Shadowhuntersthefinalhunt @shadowhunterstv

A post shared by Katherine McNamara (@kitkatsmeow) on Jun 4, 2018 at 8:24pm PDT

All good things come to an end. It has been my privelidge to be a part of this world. @ShadowhuntersTV team have been so close to my heart for 3 years. You. The fans. Make us happy and strong and proud. Thank you. For everything. We say goodbye with a heavy heart but our heads…

— Dominic Sherwood (@DomSherwood1) June 5, 2018

It has been an absolutely wonderful experience getting to be part of Shadowhunters for the past three years. After all of it, I hope I have fulfilled my promise of being the best Alec Lightwood you could ask for. Look out for the great work this crew will be doing out of

— Matthew Daddario (@MatthewDaddario) June 5, 2018

First, I want to say thank you to the INCREDIBLE fans from all over the world! This has been an amazing journey being part of @ShadowhuntersTV & to have the opportunity to play the incomparable Magnus Bane. I am so proud of our magical cast, crew & writers for 3 wonderful seasons

— Harry Shum Jr (@HarryShumJr) June 5, 2018

Shadowfamily- this has come as a complete and utter shock & I am deeply saddened. To make this show for you has been an uncommon privilege. We built this film family together and we couldn’t be more proud of all the talent in front of & behind the camera who brought SH to life.

— Matt Hastings (@mattdirector) June 5, 2018

Personally, I’ve never been a fan of Shadowhunters or Cassandra Claire’s work, but I know for a lot of other queer people it was an important show for them, especially because of Alec and Magnus. Some fans have been using the hashtag #SaveShadowhunters to try and get another network to pick it up.

Still, with its numbers doing so poorly and it being a series that probably costs a lot to produce, that might not happen, especially now that Sirens is doing so well and Cloak and Dagger has been getting glowing reviews.

What do the Shadowhunter fans out there think? Is there hope to save the show and if it’s saved will you be watching?

(image: Freeform)

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