In the midst of mass streaming cancelations and a prolonged Writers’ and Actors’ strike, yet another series has gotten the axe at Disney+…and fans are furious.
The Spiderwick Chronicles, a live-action adaptation of the children’s fantasy book series, was set to premiere a first season of 6 episodes and had already wrapped production earlier this year. However, it seems we may never see the finished product—the series has been cancelled before it even had a chance to drop on the streamer.
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Spiderwick Chronicles Streaming Adaptation Cancelled Before Premiere At Disney+
The original Spiderwick Chronicles book series, by authors Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black, tells an American gothic coming-of-age story centering on twin brothers Jared and Simon Grace, sister Mallory, and their mother, Helen, as they move from New York to the family's ancestral home in Michigan, called the Spiderwick Estate. The Grace kids soon discover an alternate, fantastical world attached to the mysterious, run-down estate. The series starred Jack Dylan Grazer (IT), Lyon Daniels, Noah Cottrell, Joy Bryant (Parenthood), Mychala Lee, and Emmy winner Christian Slater as the story's villain, Mulgarath.
The 8-episode season, which had the option of expanding into a series, was pulled by Disney amid several streamers reconsidering their content strategies during the long-running Writers' and Actors' strikes as well as concerns about streaming numbers and profitability. Though already fully shot, The Spiderwick Chronicles has been cancelled before premiere as an apparent part of a content write-off announced by Disney in May. At the time, Disney CFO Christine McCarthy said of the move, "We are in the process of reviewing the content on our DTC services to align with the strategic changes in our approach to content curation...As a result, we will be removing certain content from our streaming platforms, and currently expect to take an impairment charge of approximately $1.5 to $1.8 billion."
It was shortly after this May announcement thatmany original series and specials were pulled from Disney+ and related streamer Hulu, along with discussions about cutting back on the amount of Marvel and Star Wars content released on the app. Fans have been extremely frustrated with these content cutbacks—and were upset to learn that The Spiderwick Chronicles would be off of the service before even having a chance to premiere.
Fans Comment: 'Super Sad To See Disney Cancelling So Many Projects'
Many Disney+ subscribers have taken to social media to share their frustrations with the cutbacks and cancellations at the service since the announced content scalebacks. One wrote on Twitter/X, "If the Spiderwick Chronicles TV show is not picked up by somebody else, I am actually going to commit war crimes." Others mourned the loss of the show, and hoped it would be released elsewhere:
@paramount Will you be picking up the series 'The Spiderwick Chronicles' since @Disney canceled it? I was really looking forward to it. They made 8 episodes already. #ParamountPlus #Disney #DisneyPlus #SpiderwickChronicles
— Proud Native (@american_awake) September 4, 2023
One user pointed out on the large amount of shows the streamer has axed as of late:
Damn super sad to see Disney canceling so many projects recently:
•How I Met Your Father •The Great •Nautilus •Spiderwick Chronicles •Doogie Kamealoha M.D. •Big Shot •Mighty Ducks: Game Changers • Mysterious Benedict Society •Reboot •National Treasure •Willow — Skyler Shuler (@SkylerShuler) September 1, 2023
It's unknown whether the completed Spiderwick Chronicles episodes will be picked up at a different streamer, though producer and author of the original books Holly Black shared on Instagram that there's hope for it to premiere elsewhere.
View this post on Instagram
The Spiderwick Chronicles was produced by Paramount Television Studios and 20th Century Fox Television; Paramount is currently seeking other buyers.
