Movies - TV
Why Netflix Canceled Arcane After Two Seasons
By RAFAEL MOTAMAYOR
"Arcane" is one of the greatest animated shows ever, and the first season was the highest-rated Netflix series at release. Despite this, "Arcane" has ended after just two seasons.
Based on "League of Legends," the show portrays the origin story of several characters from the game while focusing on Vi and Jinx, two sisters caught on opposite sides of a war.
Per Variety, "Arcane" was originally planned for a five-season arc, but now parent company and "League of Legends" developer Riot Games has stalled its entertainment output.
This is largely because the two seasons of "Arcane" took six years and cost the studio $250 million to produce and promote, making it the most expensive animated series in history.
The huge budget of "Arcane" will not translate into big profits. Riot gets $3 million per episode in licensing fees, but even with skin sales and merch, they may not break even.
The CEO of Riot Games who greenlit "Arcane," Nicolo Laurent, left the company in 2023, and the entertainment division essentially disbanded. This all led to the show’s abrupt end.