It has been confirmed that The OA will not be returning for a third season on Netflix, and there won’t be a movie finale either. We’ve got all the information right here…
The sci-fi series was created by Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij, with Marling also starring in the series as Prairie, the mysterious not-blind-anymore woman at the centre of the story. The cancellation of the series was announced earlier in August, but some fans held out hope that a movie could appear to tie up the loose ends the plot – similarly to what happened with Sense 8.
However, now it seems to be confirmed that no ‘wrap-up movie’ is on the cards this time. Variety reports that Marling and Batmanglij did talk about trying to do a movie, but they ultimately decided that a two-hour film wouldn’t be a sufficient way to conclude The OA. That show was originally envisioned as five seasons, so a movie just couldn’t cut it.
Variety also states that, since Netflix is the sole producer of the show, there is no chance of another network or partner swooping in to save The OA. This really is the end, basically.
Cindy Holland, head of originals at Netflix, said this at the time of the cancellation: “We are incredibly proud of the 16 mesmerizing chapters of The OA, and are grateful to Brit and Zal for sharing their audacious vision and for realizing it through their incredible artistry. We look forward to working with them again in the future, in this and perhaps many other dimensions.”
Marling took to Instagram to share her reaction to the cancellation. Here’s an excerpt from her post:
“Zal and I are deeply sad not to finish the story. The first time I heard the news I had a good cry. So did one of our executives at Netflix that has been with us since the early days when we were sketching out Hap’s basement on the floor of our production office in Queens. It’s been an intense journey for everyone who worked on and cared for this story.”
Sadly, it’s becoming more and more common for Netflix to cancel shows quite early. The rumour is that brand new releases attract more subscriptions than returning series.