I still can’t get over the fact that Netflix only gave Bloodline three seasons before canceling it. Bloodline was one of the very first original series that Netflix had ever produced, second only to House of Cards (2013), Orange is the New Black (2013), and Marco Polo (2014). While Marco Polo only ran for two seasons, House of Cards had six seasons across 73 episodes and Orange is the New Black had seven seasons across 91 episodes. Combined, Netflix’s two first-ever original series earned 11 Emmy Awards and 72 nominations, with House of Cards earning 56 of those nominations.

Bloodline won one Emmy for Ben Mendelsohn’s performance as Danny Rayburn and could very well have won more in future seasons, had they happened. Bloodline ran for two very good seasons and a third season that completely went off the rails toward the end. It had the ingredients to follow the same footsteps as House of Cards and Orange is the New Black, even though it focused on a select number of characters in the same family rather than dozens of characters that come and go throughout the series. Fans of Big Little Lies and the recent Jake Gyllenhaal thriller Presumed Innocent will appreciate the shared themes and suspense in Bloodline.

Bloodline Was Netflix’s First Original Thriller Series & Had A Star-Studded Ensemble

The cast and performances were the highlight of the series

As Netflix’s fourth-ever original series, Bloodline had an all-star cast of Kyle Chandler, Ben Mendelsohn, Linda Cardellini, Sissy Spacek, Sam Shepard, Owen Teague, Beau Bridges, John Leguizamo, Chloë Sevigny, and more. The dynamic between Chandler and Mendelsohn was one of the best aspects of the series as two brothers who walked different paths in life and try to reconnect in their adulthood. Ben’s Danny character is the black sheep of the family who returns home to the idyllic Florida Keys, which causes major ripples for the family and their complicated past.

Bloodline is completely character-driven, much like the aforementioned Big Little Lies, meaning that the performances from the ensemble cast are everything. Like House of Cards before it, Bloodline had a fantastic opening title sequence with a title track that pulled you in every time deep within the silent tensions and subtle ebb and flows between the characters. It’s one of those shows you can easily find yourself living in for a while as the scenery is one of the most alluring components of the series. The classic “trouble in paradise” theme is modernized and expanded on thoughtfully, especially through Sam Shepard’s patriarch figure.

The First Two Seasons Of Bloodline Were Exceptional & Emmy-Winning

Critics raved about addictive Bloodline season 1 was

Bloodline season 1 was rated 81% on Rotten Tomatoes, winning over both fans and critics alike. David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter wrote in his review of Bloodline season 1, “The talent on the roster is impressive indeed, and the Netflix full-season delivery model seems fortuitous in that Bloodline, on the basis of this sampling, begs to be binge-watched.” Mendelsohn won a Supporting Actor Emmy in 2016, which is another sign of the show’s critical acclaim and overall quality. The series had major potential to become one of Netflix’s all-time greats if season 3 didn’t completely flop.

Why Netflix Ended Bloodline After Season 3

The showrunners originally planned 5 or 6 seasons

The creators of Bloodline had originally planned for the series to run for five or six seasons, meaning that the third season had to be put together outside of the initial vision.

The writers of Bloodline were apparently told halfway through writing season 3 that the series was getting canceled, which explains the complete downturn in the quality of the series towards the latter half of the third season. It was so bad that it basically created another Dexter finale-level controversy. There was also the end of the Florida tax incentive at the start of the third season, which made the show more expensive and vulnerable to getting axed.

One of the Bloodline creators Todd A. Kessler spoke to Variety about the original plan for the series. “When we sold it to Netflix, that was the idea, that it would run in success for five or six seasons. And when we got the call, that they wanted us to end the Rayburns’ story after three seasons, it just meant looking at our notes for what we had planned for seasons four and five and six, and figuring out what we could pull and combine in order to make the most entertaining and emotionally satisfying and fulfilling story that we could.” Essentially, Bloodline season 3 is a culmination of three seasons that should have but never got made, which seems like a major missed opportunity.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter, Variety