The final season of What We Do In The Shadows began airing earlier this month. The vampires of Staten Island are all set to get an ending to their arcs (though probably not their lives) after six seasons of fun and frolic. The FX series was based on the 2014 mockumentary film of the same name, created by Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement.
While a cult classic comedy film hardly made it a great contender for a series adaptation, What We Do In The Shadows hit big and received consistently good reviews from fans and critics alike as the seasons progressed. It will definitely be sad to see the fan-favorite vampires hang up their cloaks, but it may just be for the better.
The Viewership For What We Do In The Shadows Has Been Decreasing
The series had its origin with the cult classic mockumentary film What We Do In The Shadows. The New Zealand film was directed by Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi and was a sleeper hit, earning $7.2 million (via Box Office Mojo). Clement and Waititi came on board the series as executive producers and wrote the pilot episode.
While the initial seasons seemed to have a solid viewer base and had exponential ratings, the fifth season reportedly saw a significant decrease. Deadline reported that the fifth season premiere had a 35% decrease in viewership on FX. The season reportedly came down from a season 4 average of 356K viewers to 275K.
A further reduction in viewership may be devastating for the series and a premature cancellation would definitely anger fans. Hence, a timely exit before it gets worse might be a smart move from the makers.
The Cast Of What We Do In The Shadows Are Getting Busy
When a series becomes successful, it affects the careers of everyone involved, especially the cast members. The success of What We Do In The Shadows not only gave the lead actors a regular job but also led to multiple other offers and opportunities. Kavyan Novak, who plays Nandor, has been in Cruella and joined as a series regular on Archer till 2023.
Natasia Demetriou’s sketch show Elli & Natasia was released on BBC and even reviewed a second series renewal. The series’ Laszlo Matt Berry, of course, has been in several shows and films. He has been busy with his music career, voice-over work, and shows. He was recently seen in The Wild Robot and will also reportedly appear in A Minecraft Movie.
The breakout star of the series has to be Harvey Guillén who has reportedly been cast in the films Companion and The Life of Chuck. He also lent his voice to Nightwing in the third season of Harley Quinn and appeared in Blue Beetle.
The Creators Said They Wanted To End The Series When They Are At The Top
Many great shows have overstayed their welcome and have lost out on a dignified legacy by churning out episodes for the sake of it. Similarly, many series have cemented their impact as one of the greats by bowing out at the right time. Breaking Bad did it after season 5 and What We Do In The Shadows will be doing with its sixth.
At this year’s New York Comic Con, showrunner Paul Simms mentioned that they did not want to overstay their welcome and see their fans dwindle. He said (via THR),
I think it’s better to go out on top, and better too soon than too late. I don’t want to stay long enough that this auditorium would just have a few people in the front. I mean, just look at how many people are here. It’s all in season six. Everything we ever wanted to do is in there.
With a reduction in viewership numbers and ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, saying goodbye when there is still some good left may just be the best idea.
What We Do In The Shadows is available to stream on Hulu.
