Netflix’s psychological deep-dive into real-life serial killers,Mindhunter, was canceled after season 2, but the streaming service never outright explained why.Mindhunteris based on the true storyof the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit and its founding members. Those members - Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff), Bill Tench (Holt McCallany), and Dr. Wendy Carr (Anna Torv) - interviewed serial killers extensively to learn how their minds worked and how to catch future murderers.Mindhunterwas a brilliant mix of mystery and psychological drama, and it ended a bit too soon.
Mindhunterwas majorly popular in many ways. It boasts an extremely impressive 97% average onRotten Tomatoes, withMindhunterseason 2 at 99%. Thecast ofMindhunterseason 2also boasted some very notable actors, such as Tony-winning actor Jonathan Groff, and the show still has a dedicated following five years after its last season. That, coupled with theintriguing real serial killers depicted onMindhunter, makes it seem like the show was a guaranteed success, but Netflix canceled it after just two seasons in 2019. Now, five years later, executive producer David Fincher explained whyMindhunterwas canceled.
Netflix Canceled Mindhunter Season 3 Because The Show Was Too Expensive
Netflix Couldn’t Justify Mindhunter’s Budget With Such Low Viewership
Executive producer ofMindhunter,David Fincher, explained why the show was canceled, and it boiled down to financial issues. As Fincher explained,Mindhunterwas simply too expensive to make and too experimental to draw in wide audiences, so Netflix decided to cancel the show.
“We went as far as we could until someone finally said to us, ‘It makes no sense to produce this series like this, unless you’re able to reduce the budget or make it more pop, so that more people will watch it. We did not want to change our approach, so, respectfully, they told us that they were drawing a line under it.'”
It’s not known how much each episode ofMindhunterseason 2 cost, but it did have a notoriously difficult development that saw Fincher relocate to Pittsburgh for months to rework scripts and shoot scenes (viaVariety). After that, Fincher said he needed some time away, andMindhunterwas never renewed after the executive producer’s hiatus.Evidently,Mindhunter’s critical reception and depiction of real-life serial killers at the height of the true crime infatuation wasn’t enough to draw in viewers.
As Fincher’s comments suggest, the executives at Netflix clearly would have required some significant changes be made toMindhunterfor season 3 to get bankrolled.Mindhunterwas a very unusual show in the world of police procedurals. Fincher himself said it was the “portrait of the guy who loses his virginity in the world of psychosexual sadists,” which, coupled with its unusual format, likely didn’t help it draw in new viewers.Netflix likely wantedMindhunterto become more likeCriminal Minds, which is to say a police procedural focused on using psychological profiling to catch fictional serial killers in the act.
15 Best Shows Like Mindhunter
The best shows like Mindhunter typically center on true crimes and murderers, and should intrigue fans of the David Fincher Netflix series.
The only alternative that would have letMindhunterget renewed, short of revamping the entire structure of the show, would be to severely limit its budget. As a period drama,Mindhunter’s budget was likely inflated by the special sets, wardrobes, and CGI it had to use to match the late 1970s and early 1980s look.It’s safe to say that a limited budget would have had some far-reaching effects onMindhunterseason 3. The show wouldn’t have been able to explore as many serial killers as it wanted to, and it likely would have had to settle for fewer and less period-accurate sets and costumes.
Everything We Know About What Mindhunter Season 3 Would’ve Been Like
There Are A Few Likely Theories About What Mindhunter Season 3 Could Have Followed
After David Fincher’s hiatus from the show and its cancelation, there isn’t much that’s known aboutMindhunterseason 3. Based on the season 2 finale, however, there are a few likelydirections the story ofMindhunterseason 3 could have followed.Mindhunterseason 3 could have dove deeper into the personal lives of Holden, Tench, and Carr, with a particular emphasis on Tench’s family drama.Mindhunterseason 2 also ended in about 1981, so season 3 could have easily explored the psyches and hunt for notorious serial killers like the Sunset Strip Killers or the Southside Slayer.
Mindhunter season 2 also ended in about 1981, so season 3 could have easily explored the psyches and hunt for notorious serial killers like the Sunset Strip Killers or the Southside Slayer.
In his interviews, however, David Fincher also mentioned that he always wants to avoid doing what is expected of him. That meansMindhunterseason 3 likely would have broken away from all expectations in favor of something surprising, but it doesn’t seem like audiences will soon find out what was in store.There is still a chance thatMindhunterseason 3 could happen, now that Fincher has made two successful films for Netflix:MankandThe Killer. Those movies may have restored Netflix’s faith in Fincher, and the streaming service could giveMindhunteranother chance.
Mindhunter
Cast
From executive producers David Fincher and Charlize Theron comes Mindhunter, a series that chronicles the founding of the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit used to track and apprehend serial killers. Mindhunter follows Agent Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff) and Bill Tench (Holt McCallany) as they work to establish a framework for understanding the minds of some of America’s most dangerous serial killers. Mindhunter adapts a number of true crime stories, including the BTK murders and the notorious Co-Ed Killer, Edmund Kemper.
