Showrunners Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese made a big splash on Netflix in 2017 with Dark, the sci-fi thriller series about characters in Winden, Germany investigating the truth behind a child’s disappearance, which led to a time travel conspiracy being uncovered. Dark ran for three seasons, wrapping up in 2020, and in late 2022, Odar and Friese returned with 1899, another sci-fi TV offering. However, unlike Dark, 1899 will not run for multiple seasons, as the showrunning duo have announced its cancellation in a statement to fans.
1899 premiered all eight of its episodes to Netflix subscribers on November 17, 2022, and it didn’t take long for the show to start crushing. Alas, those of you who enjoyed 1899 will have to make peace with this being a one-season saga. Here’s what Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese had to say on on Odar’s Instagram page:
With a heavy heart we have to tell you that 1899 will not be renewed. We would have loved to finish this incredible journey with a 2nd and 3rd season as we did with Dark. But sometimes things don’t turn out the way you planned. That’s life. We know this will disappoint millions of fans out there. But we want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts that you were a part of this wonderful adventure. We love you. Never forget.
Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese did not share any specific reasoning for why Netflix decided to cancel 1899, but they’re clearly saddened by this outcome, as they had two more seasons worth of story planned out, just like with Dark. Critically, 1899 certainly wasn’t lacking in positive press, with the show ranking at 76% among critics on Rotten Tomatoes, and 74% on its Audience Score. For whatever reason though, Netflix decided to scrap 1899 less than two months after its premiere, and it doesn't sound like there's any chance of the show moving to another platform.
Taking place in the titular year, 1899 followed a group of passengers aboard the steamship Kerberos traveling from South Hampton, United Kingdom to New York City to start new lives. During the voyage though, the ship comes across another ship that had disappeared months earlier, which leads to strange phenomena unfolding. 1899’s starring actors included Emily Beecham, Aneurin Barnard, Andreas Pietschmann, Miguel Bernardeau, José Pimentão, Isabella Wei, Gabby Wong, Yann Gael and Mathilde Oliver, among many others.
It’s especially disappointing that 1899 won’t get another season considering that Season 1 ended on quite the cliffhanger, with multiple theories in play about what happened in the final scene. Since 1899 Season 2 is no longer on the table, it’ll be up to fans to come up with their own conclusion. However, maybe at a later date, Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese could share with the public what had been planned for Seasons 2 and 3, just like how Mike Flanagan shared what he’d planned for Season 2 of fellow Netflix series The Midnight Club, which was also cancelled after one season.
So 1899 is no more, but be sure to look through our guides detailing the 2023 Netflix movies and 2023 Netflix TV shows that have been slated so far. You can also see what top sci-fi shows are available to watch on Netflix now.
