The Owl House has started its third and final season, and many are confused about why the exceedingly popular show is being concluded prematurely. Unfortunately, the blame seems to lie in Disney’s lap – and fans aren’t happy.
The cancellation of a TV series can be an emotional and upsetting thing for a fanbase. Shows are canceled for several reasons, from the ratings being too low to the interest dipping to the point of no longer being sustainable. However, in the case of extremely successful shows like The Owl House, the reason is much more upsetting.
The Owl House is a Disney Channel show that follows the story of a human girl, Luz, after she stumbles on a magical portal door and finds herself living temporarily in a realm filled with witches and magic. During her time in “The Boiling Isles”, she befriends a temperamental older witch called Eda, and her adopted dependent King. Luz’s adventures quickly gained traction alongside the show’s audience.
The Owl House has harmonized with viewers of all ages thanks to its beautiful animation, diverse and inclusive cast of characters, and excellent storytelling. Because of this, the audience was shocked and heartbroken when the announcement came that Disney would be canceling the show after a shortened third season.
Why did Disney cancel The Owl House?
According to a Q&A posted to Reddit by show creator Dana Terrace, the show was canceled due to Disney’s perceived brand.
According to Dana, “At the end of the day, there are a few business people who oversee what fits into the Disney brand and one day one of those guys decided TOH didn’t fit that “brand”. The story is serialized (BARELY compared to any average anime lmao), our audience skews older, and that just didn’t fit this one guy’s tastes. That’s it! Ain’t that wild? Really grinds my guts, boils my brain, kicks my shins, all the things. It sucks but it is what it is.”
While some speculated that the show met its end due to the inclusive LGBTQAI+ themes, Dana did add, “While we have had issues airing in a few countries (and are just straight up banned in a few more) I’m not gonna assume bad faith against the people I work with in LA.” seemingly debunking that Luz’s sexuality, and that of the other characters in the show, didn’t play a part in the decision.
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The Owl House fans prove this was a bad decision by Disney
Despite Dana’s acceptance of The Owl House’s fate, the recent release of Season 3 episode 1 proves what a truly bad move the cancelation is for Disney.
In a Tweet shared by Dana Terrace‘s Twitter account, she says “Trending on @youtube? Over 1mil views? Thanks everyone. :)”, with the tweet itself gathering more than 48k likes.
In addition to this, fan art, emotional fan responses, and video breakdowns of the episode have all flooded different social media and streaming platforms. Animation reels like the one from Tom Barkel on Twitter sit at more than 66K likes, with fans sharing their joy and admiration for the series in the comments of the post.
#TOHSPOILERS The animation I was fortunate enough to do for the latest Owl House ep! pic.twitter.com/Eal6rYYRR4
— Tom Barkel (@barkel_tom) October 18, 2022
The hard truth of The Owl House is that it is a massively popular and loved TV series with progressive concepts – and it is still going to be flushed. While it may not “fit Disney’s brand”, its cancelation will likely leave bad tastes in the mouths of those who enjoyed it and were upset to see it cut short.
The truly upsetting thing about the cancelation of The Owl House isn’t that a TV show is going away, but that Disney’s brand doesn’t have room for the content of this style. Despite the overwhelming desire for shows of this type, it seems the family staple is intent on sticking with what it has done in the past – and it could truly bode ill for Disney’s future.
