Netflix Quietly Pulls the Plug on Beloved Sci-Fi Series After One Season, Writer Confirms the End
Nearly two years after its debut, it is now clear that Terminator Zero will not continue. The animated series, set in the world created by James Cameron, has officially been stopped after just one season. The confirmation came directly from the show’s writer, Mattson Tomlin, who responded to fans online and put an end to months of uncertainty.
For a long time, the future of the show was unclear. Early on, some fans believed a second season was coming after a Netflix regional account hinted at it online. That post was later removed, and no official update followed. As time passed, silence from Netflix made it clear the project was likely over. Now, Tomlin has confirmed that no new episodes are planned.
According to Tomlin, the show had a short burst of attention when it first launched. It reached Netflix’s global top 10 for a brief period and pulled in a few million views. After that, interest dropped fast. He shared that viewing numbers fell sharply the following year, which made it hard for Netflix to justify the cost of continuing the series. He also compared its performance to Blue Eye Samurai, which drew far more viewers and earned a full renewal.
It was cancelled. The critical and audience reception to it was tremendous, but at the end of the day not nearly enough people watched it. I would’ve loved to deliver on the Future War I had planned in season’s 2 and 3, but I’m also very happy with how it feels contained as is. https://t.co/Dh7G6gkBF7 pic.twitter.com/dqCSXHIytg
— mattson tomlin (@mattsontomlin) February 13, 2026
Even so, Tomlin made it clear there was no bad blood. He said Netflix supported his vision and allowed him a lot of freedom while making the show. “Netflix was really great about supporting the show and giving me tremendous creative freedom to do what I wanted to do. Good partners,” he wrote. He explained that the series was expensive and took a long time to make, and without a bigger audience, it could not move forward.
Netflix was really great about supporting the show and giving me tremendous creative freedom to do what I wanted to do. Good partners. The show was expensive and very time consuming. The only way they could justify it was if the audience showed up for it, and they just didn’t. https://t.co/psEDbh5tcZ pic.twitter.com/EtRKLh5SH1
— mattson tomlin (@mattsontomlin) February 13, 2026
Tomlin also revealed that he had already planned far ahead. He said he had written scripts for a second season and had most of a third season mapped out. “Maybe someday I’ll do a big thread about the plans I had for the full five season run,” he shared, adding that the season one ending was carefully designed and meant a lot to him.
Netflix did offer him a chance to finish the story with a few extra episodes, but he turned it down. “They offered to let me do 2, maybe 3 episodes more to wrap up the story, which I declined,” he explained. He felt the story he wanted to tell needed more time and that the existing ending worked well enough on its own.
While the show is now officially over, Tomlin left the door open for the future. “Maybe I will return to that world in a different form,” he wrote, saying he was grateful for the fans who connected with the series.
This is another case where streaming numbers matter more than creative ambition. Even strong ideas can disappear if the audience is not big enough. It is frustrating for fans, especially when a story still has more to give. What do you think about Netflix ending shows this way? Should platforms do more to wrap up stories properly? Share your thoughts in the comments.
