Dead Boy Detectives Canceled on Netflix After One Season

The Sandman Universe spinoff won't continue on Netflix.

It's one and done for the Dead Boy Detectives on Netflix. According to Variety, the series based on characters from DC's Vertigo imprint has been canceled, with only one season making it to the streamer. Dead Boy Detectives made its debut on Netflix back on April 25th and even found itself as part of The Sandman Universe, with Netflix also streaming the original series from creator Neil Gaiman. The Sandman is gearing up for its second season, but the same fate apparently does not await Dead Boy Detectives. It's unknown at this time if the series will be shopped around to other streamers.

As with everything when it comes to Netflix cancellations, Dead Boy Detectives' fate may be tied to its streaming numbers. It made it to Netflix's Top 10 list during its first three weeks, though it only had 3.1 million views for the first three days it was on the platform. By the time it dropped out of the Netflix Top 10, Dead Boy Detectives only had 1.8 million views, which are defined as a total series runtime divided by total hours viewed. Dead Boy Detectives did average a 92 critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes, so it was at least well received, even if the viewing numbers didn't remain stable during its tenure.

Dead Boy Detectives showrunners discuss Season 2 potential

After the release of Dead Boy Detectives, co-showrunners Steve Yockey and Beth Schwartz discussed their hopes for a second season, and how much farther they can push the story limits.

"I think there's not a limit that we found yet to how far we could go, but that's a very brash answer," Yockey said. "I would say we've had some really, really good conversations about what a second season would look like. The cool thing about the show is because it has the overriding season arcs but also a case of the week, it has the kind of legs where it can just keep going. So, we hope we get that opportunity."

"We ended the season specifically to set up a Season 2 because all our characters re going back to London and the agency has expanded, "Schwartz said. "Just all the fun and the new dynamics that we could explore in Season 2 would be really, really exciting for us."

What is Dead Boy Detectives about?

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Do you have a pesky ghost haunting you? Has a demon stolen your core memories? You may want to ring the Dead Boy Detectives.

Meet Edwin Payne (George Rexstrew) and Charles Rowland (Jayden Revri), "the brains" and "the brawn" behind the Dead Boy Detectives agency. Teenagers born decades apart who find each other only in death, Edwin and Charles are best friends and ghosts… who solve mysteries. They will do anything to stick together – including escaping evil witches, Hell and Death herself. With the help of a clairvoyant named Crystal (Kassius Nelson) and her friend Niko (Yuyu Kitamura), they are able to crack some of the mortal realm's most mystifying paranormal cases.

As part of The Sandman Universe for Netflix and based on the beloved comic series from Neil Gaiman, Dead Boy Detectives was developed for television by Steve Yockey, who serves as co-showrunner alongside Beth Schwartz and is brought to you by Greg Berlanti. Jeremy Carver and Sarah Schechter also serve as executive producers. The series also stars Jenn Lyon, Briana Cuoco, Lukas Gage, David Iacono and Ruth Connell.