“Dead Boy Detectives” has been canceled at Netflix. The series aired its one and only season at the streamer on April 25.
Thus ends the show’s twisty path to the screen. It originally got a pilot order at Max in 2021 and then a series order at that streamer in 2022 before it was sold to Netflix in 2023. It was reported at the time that the sale took place because the show, which is based on characters created for DC by Neil Gaiman and Matt Wagner, did not fit with the new direction for Max-DC content being spearheaded by James Gunn and Peter Safran.
At Netflix, it was a part of the “Sandman” universe, as the Dead Boy Detectives were first introduced in an issue of “The Sandman” comic book. Netflix currently airs “The Sandman” TV series, with a second season on the way.
George Rexstrew and Jayden Revri starred as the titular dead boys, who became friends in the afterlife and teamed to solve supernatural mysteries. The cast also included Kassius Nelson, Yuyu Kitamura, Jenn Lyon, Briana Cuoco, David Iacono, Lukas Gage, and Ruth Connell.
Steve Yockey developed the series for television. Yockey also served as co-showrunner and executive producer alongside Beth Schwartz. Greg Berlanti, Jeremy Carver, Sarah Schechter, Leigh London Redman, and Gaiman also served as executive producers of the series. The first episode was directed and executive produced by Lee Toland Krieger. Berlanti Productions produces in association with Warner Bros. Television, where Berlanti Productions is under an overall deal.
The show opened well, relatively speaking, remaining in the Netflix Top 10 English TV charts for three weeks after its release. It peaked at the number two spot the week of April 22-28, but managed just 3.1 million views in its first three days of availability (Netflix defines a view as total series runtime divided by total hours viewed). It dropped to number three in its first full week of availability but rose in total views to 4.7 million. It then dropped to just 1.8 million views in week three before falling off the Top 10 chart.
The show did well with critics, however, averaging a 92% critical approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
