Dead Boy Detectives has been canceled on Netflix. The show's only season aired on the streaming platform on April 25.
And so ends the show’s twisty journey to the screen. It originally got a pilot order on Max in 2021 and then a series order on the same service in 2022 before being sold to Netflix in 2023. At the time, the sale was said to have been made because the show, based on characters created for DC by Neil Gaiman and Matt Wagner, didn’t fit with the new direction of Max-DC content led by James Gunn and Peter Safran.
On Netflix, he was part of the “Sandman” universe, where the Dead Boy Detectives were first introduced in one of the “The Sandman” comic book issues. Netflix is currently airing the “The Sandman” TV series, with a second season on the way.
George Rextrow and Jayden Revery star as dead boys who become friends in the afterlife and team up to solve supernatural mysteries. The cast also includes Cassius Nelson, Yuyu Kitamura, Jenn Lyon, Brianna Coco, David Iacono, Lucas Gage, and Ruth Connell.
The series was developed for television by Steve Yockey. Yockey served as co-showrunner and executive producer alongside Beth Schwartz. Greg Berlanti, Jeremy Carver, Sarah Schechter, Lee London Redman, and Jaimen served as executive producers on the series. The first episode was directed and executive produced by Lee Toland Krieger. Berlanti Productions produces in association with Warner Bros. Television, where Berlanti Productions operates under an overall deal.
The series had a relatively good opening, remaining in Netflix's top 10 English TV series for three weeks after its release. It peaked at number two the week of April 22–28, but managed just 3.1 million views in its first three days of availability (Netflix defines viewing as total runtime of a series divided by total hours watched). It dropped to number three in its first full week of availability but rose in total views to 4.7 million. It then dropped to just 1.8 million views in its third week before falling out of the top 10.
However, the show was well received by critics, holding an average critical rating of 92% on Rotten Tomatoes.
