It seems Ransom Canyon is about to ride off into the sunset. Netflix will reportedly not be renewing the romantic drama for a third season and has canceled the series after two seasons.
As first reported by Deadline, Ransom Canyon will not be returning for a third season, and it sounds like the show’s viewership numbers were to blame. Season 2 saw a sharp decline in viewership, falling 43% from its first week of release, with its second season drawing a mere 4.1 million views upon season 2’s release. The show did manage to break into Netflix’s Top 10 but quickly fell out after just three weeks, dropping out of the Top 10 a week earlier than the show’s first season, which managed to retain a place in the most-watched series list for four weeks.
Interestingly, it sounds like Netflix was happy with the show’s second season creatively, with season 2 being much more well-received internally. Sadly, though, Netflix is all about the numbers, and the show’s performance was not enough to merit a third season. And if we’re being honest, the show was lucky to get a second season, as its first season didn’t exactly have the biggest opening.
Unfortunately, as Ransom Canyon hails from Netflix Studios, the show does not have a hope of being shopped around for a third season. Not that it would have fared well even if it was from an outside studio, as Netflix has made it quite hard for its originals to be picked up by rival platforms.
The one silver lining is that season 2 did not end with any major unresolved storylines; in fact, the show sort of got a perfect unplanned ending… at least for the show’s central couple. Season 2 ended with Stanten giving Quinn a key to Double K Ranch, asking her to move in with him after she sold her farm. Of course, the hope was that a third season would allow fans the opportunity to see the pair further their relationship, but at least they ended the season together, which gives fans the opportunity to picture them getting a happy ending.
There were some unresolved threads that fans won’t get resolution for, such as whether Ellie and Yancy might find their way back to one another after she broke up with him following the birth of their daughter. We’ll also never find out what was next for Kit and Lauren after Lauren chose to pursue her feelings for Kit after breaking up with his brother, Lucas.
It’s definitely unfortunate that we won’t get to see what could have come after season 2’s ending, but we’re just happy to have gotten a second season and to have been able to enjoy two seasons of the show. Ransom Canyon was definitely an underrated Netflix original, and it’s a shame more viewers didn’t tune in to the series. Given the success of shows like Virgin River, it’s honestly somewhat surprising the show wasn’t a bigger hit for Netflix, but that’s just how it goes.
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