Brit Marling, the star and co-creator of The OA on Netflix, is floored by the reaction of the fans after the streaming platform decided not to renew the series for season 3. Loyal viewers of the show have been so disappointed about the cancellation that they've been picketing in front of Netflix's office in Hollywood in the last week.
In a lengthy post on Instagram, Marling said that she and co-creator Zal Batmanglij are humbled by the support fans have poured into saving the series. Amid demands that Netflix delivers The OA season 3, fans have also been staging a hunger strike.
Marling said that she's moved by the words and artwork that fans sent to convince Netflix to renew The OA season 3. Marling, who is also the writer and the director of the show, also touched on the "role of storytelling" as well as "capitalism's push toward consolidation and economies of scale" in her message to the fans.
The creative star also relayed an interaction she had a 35-year-old fan named Emperial Young who has not eaten since Aug. 16. Young said she would not take a bite of food until Netflix grants The OA season 3, so Marling and Batmanglij went to the protest to give her water.
"[Young] said something that I haven't been able to forget since: 'Algorithms aren't as smart as we are. They cannot account for love.' Her words. Not mine. And the story keeps going inside them," Marling wrote.
In response, Young also posted a message on her social media to say that Marling's message made her cry, per Entertainment Weekly. The fan also said that the show's creators are "credit to the species" and that she appreciated Marling and Batmanglij's gesture.
Netflix canceled The OAin the first week of August or four months after the second season was released on the platform. Netflix boss Cindy Holland said in a statement that they are proud of the show's 16 episodes.
Despite this, however, the show got the cut after two seasons. According to Netflix CEO Reed Hastings via Variety, cancellations are usually decided based on cost versus viewership. It is assumed that The OA costs a lot to produce but failed to earn substantial viewership. It took Marling and Batmanglij more than two years to produce the follow-up.
The creators originally had a five-season plan for The OA and the second season ended with a lot of questions. Those will no longer be answered as it doesn't look like The OA is being shopped on another platform.
