TV Viewers’ Habits Are Affected By Fears of Having Their Hearts Broken By Cancellations, According To A New Study

There are some shows that are so big, you have to tune in. Take The Last Of Us or House of the Dragon, for instance. If you have so much as looked at the internet over the last year, you know that these shows have been dominating, and there is no chance of them slowing down, which is the perfect opportunity to start watching said shows, because you know they will have long and prosperous runs. This isn’t always the case: if you want to check out a new series but keep hearing about different shows being cancelled left and right, it would be understandable if you are hesitant. In fact, you are not alone.

According to a new study from YouGov , almost half of Americans either sometimes or always wait until a show concludes before diving in. In the 18-to-34-year-old age group, 25% said always and 34% said they sometimes wait for an entire show to air before deciding to watch, thanks to the appeal of binging 5 episodes in one sitting.

Of that hesitant bunch, 27% decide to wait due to fear of the series being cancelled abruptly with no conclusion or satisfying ending. Many shows were sacrificed in the last year due to various restructuring from your favorite streamers, though some showrunners came up with a little bit of closure. After The Midnight Club was axed, producer Mike Flanagan wrote a lengthy Tumblr post outlining how the second season would have gone down. While it would be better for fans to actually see their storylines play out, it was a nice gesture!

The survey also revealed that 31% of U.S. adults who use streaming services estimated that at least one to three of the shows they had started since February 2022 had been cancelled, leaving cliffhangers and sometimes garnering sometimes aggressive fan-led campaigns to bring them back.

While we may never have justice for certain shows (Santa Clarita Diet deserved better), we will always have at least 20 seasons of Grey’s Anatomy to watch at any given time, which is a small peace of mind.