Entertainment

‘One Day At A Time’ Was Canceled By Netflix & Twitter Is Now In Mourning

Ali Goldstein/Netflix

Today isn't a good day for fans of One Day At A Time. On Thursday, March 14, Netflix officially announced that One Day At A Time has been canceled, and will not be renewed for Season 4. Netflix announced the news on social media, and Twitter reacted to the One Day At A Time cancellation with sadness, anger, and an endless number of disappointed GIFs.

"We’ve made the very difficult decision not to renew One Day At A Time for a fourth season," Netflix tweeted. "The choice did not come easily — we spent several weeks trying to find a way to make another season work but in the end simply not enough people watched to justify another season."

The news followed a push by fans on Twitter to keep the reboot of the '70s sitcom alive, but ultimately, it didn't work. In a series of tweets, Netflix thanked creator Norman Lear, the cast, and the show's executive producers Gloria Calderon Kellett and Mike Royce "for always making us laugh and never shying away from bravely and beautifully tackling tough subject matter in a meaningful way."

Netflix ended this sad note with a message to fans who found a kinship with this Cuban-American family. "And to anyone who felt seen or represented — possibly for the first time — by ODAAT," Netflix tweeted, "please don’t take this as an indication your story is not important. The outpouring of love for this show is a firm reminder to us that we must continue finding ways to tell these stories."

Still, fans were sad to hear that the show they loved would not be returning for another season, especially since they felt Netflix did little to save it. "The cast and writers of ODAAT tried so hard to promote their own show," a fan named @santiagosperlta tweeted, "whilst Netflix did nothing. and now Netflix say that they tried their hardest ?? big sigh."

Indiewire's senior film critic David Ehrlich poked fun at the things Netflix has spent time and money promoting. "maybe if ONE DAY AT A TIME didn’t want to get canceled by Netflix it should have been about a bird box," he tweeted, adding, "(it is insane to me that netflix canceled this show that people loved and they refused to promote.)"

Fans agreed that Netflix's decision here seemed off based on the other shows they've chosen to renew. "AND U GUYS CAN RENEW INSATIABLE??? Literally no one asked for a second season," @pamsleslie tweeted, referencing the much-aligned series, which is coming back for Season 2. "NO ONE WANTS A SEQUEL FOR KISSING BOOTH. BUT U GUYS WENT AHEAD WITH THAT BUT U CANT RENEW ODAAT???"

Especially because it gave so many fans a chance to see a family that felt of this moment. "Netflix is really cancelling a show that shows diversity, real life problems and situations, that touched lots of peoples’ hearts, because of views," @jakefumeros tweeted. "ODAAT has taught us so much about the community around us please #SaveODAAT."

The cast was also said to say goodbye. One Day at a Time's Justina Marchado tweeted how disappointed she was that her TV family wouldn't be coming back, but also how proud. "Truly, I am so honored that we got to tell our stories," she wrote. "Yes it was a Latinx family but it was a universal story about family and love. An American Familia."

That very reason is why Rolling Stone's Chief TV Critic Alan Sepinwall took offense to Netflix's "seen" tweet, writing that he understands how business works, but "when you have a seemingly endless supply of programming $, you don't get to tweet something like this about a show you could have kept around as a loss leader." In other words, its cultural importance should have been considered a reason to renew it.

While fans might have been frustrated by the news, Royce posted a heartfelt message to fans from he and Calderón Kellett letting them know "while our hearts are very heavy, they are also bursting with appreciation for this amazing experience."

Royce, along with ODAAT star Isabella Gomez, also offered fans a bit of hope for the future of the show. "Along with our studio Sony, we will be exploring other places One Day at a Time can live," he wrote, "and with any luck we'll find one."

Whether the show finds a new home or not, it's clear that in its three seasons One Day at a Time touched people's hearts in a way that most shows can only dream.