‘That was never the plan’: Arcane creators dismiss claims that the hit Netflix show was going to run for five seasons
Exclusive: ‘Five seasons was nothing but tomfoolery on our part’
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Arcane’s creators have dismissed reports that the hugely successful show was originally going to run for five seasons.
Speaking exclusively to TechRadar beforeArcaneseason 2 makes its Netflix debut on November 9, Christian Linke and Alex Yee said the situation had been blown out of proportion. Indeed, the pair admitted it was all just a simple misunderstanding, with its origins stemming from a prank that former Riot Games CEO Nicolo Laurent pulled on Linke years ago.
Linke and Yee’s response comes hot on the heels of a Variety article published on November 6. Citing sources close to theNetflixseries' production, the outlet suggested thatArcanewas originally going to run for five seasons. Unsurprisingly, the story spread like wildfire across the internet, leading to fans – myself included – to ask why Riot and Netflixhad decided to call time onArcaneafter two seasons.
As it happens,Arcaneseason 2was always going to be the hit animated show’s final chapter – Linke telling me that a two-season arc was settled on “from the beginning”. And, as Linke and Yee went on to explain,Vi and Jinx’s story was always going to be concluded after two seasons.
“When we started building out the story after the pilot [that we showed internally at Riot], that’s when we were like ‘Okay, it’s going to be two seasons,'” Linke revealed. “It was never the plan for it to last five seasons.
It’s almost the opposite of what people have interpreted it to be
“But, what happened was – I think we had the pilot or a few episodes, but we still hadn’t had the green light for a full season. At the time, Nicolo thought it would be really funny to pull me into a room and say ‘Hey, I know you haven’t had the green light yet, and I decided I’m not going to give it to you’. I sat there, looking pretty upset, before he added ‘Because I’m giving you the go-ahead for five seasons!’. We both laughed but it was, you know –”
“It’s almost the opposite of what people have interpreted it [the five-season rumor] to be,” Yee interjected. “Making an animated series – it has such a long development pipeline that it was a lot for us to ask them [Riot’s executive team] to trust us with one season. But we also said ‘If you want there to be another season soon after that, we need to start working on it while we’re finishing the first one’. So, that five-season joke was their way of saying ‘Hey, we want to give you a lot of runway with this.'”
Get the best Black Friday deals direct to your inbox, plus news, reviews, and more.
Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable Black Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content.
“Yeah, then we said ‘okay, it’s going to be two, and then we’ll grow from there,'” Linke added.
Ready?Only 24 hours left until #Arcane Season 2 premieres on @netflix. pic.twitter.com/0Qf6ixBBLINovember 8, 2024
That “we’ll grow from there” quote still suggests that there may have been talk of another installment, though. So, were there any discussions about stretching out season 2’s original plot across two more entries? After all, a similar approach is being taken by HBO regarding its TV adaptation of Naughty Dog’sThe Last of Us Part 2video game, whose story will spanThe Last of Usseason 2and a sequel season.
“Honestly, the story that’s concluding with this season is the one we plotted out from the get-go with the rest of the team,” Yee confirmed. “I think we imagined ways that it could go beyond that, but one more season was the milestone we always wanted to hit.”
“Long story short,” Linke added, “five seasons was nothing but tomfoolery on our part.”
I’ll be bringing you more exclusive content from my chat with one of thebest Netflix shows’ showrunners in the days and weeks ahead, so check back in with me soon for further insights. In the meantime, read some of the other season 2-focused articles I’ve written beforeArcane’s return on the world’sbest streaming servicebelow.
You might also like
As TechRadar’s senior entertainment reporter, Tom covers all of the latest movies, TV shows, and streaming service news that you need to know about. You’ll regularly find him writing about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, Netflix, Prime Video, Disney Plus, and many other topics of interest.
An NCTJ-accredited journalist, Tom also writes reviews, analytical articles, opinion pieces, and interview-led features on the biggest franchises, actors, directors and other industry leaders. You may see his quotes pop up in the odd official Marvel Studios video, too, such as thisMoon Knight TV spot.
Away from work, Tom can be found checking out the latest video games, immersing himself in his favorite sporting pastime of football, reading the many unread books on his shelf, staying fit at the gym, and petting every dog he comes across.
Got a scoop, interesting story, or an intriguing angle on the latest news in entertainment? Feel free to drop him a line.
Arcane season 2 was reportedly going to run for five seasons, so why is my all-time favorite Netflix show ending after two?
Scavengers Reign co-creator says the hit Netflix show with 100% Rotten Tomatoes has been canceled and fans are heartbroken
England vs Australia live stream: how to watch 2024 rugby union Autumn International online from anywhere
