Exclusive : Netflix will not renew a second season of Kevin Williamson’s crime drama series The Waterfront , Deadline has learned. Williamson has spoken out about the abrupt decision, and crew members have also been informed that there will be no season 2, sources said.
The news is somewhat surprising, as the twisted tale of North Carolina’s influential Buckley family did solid business, spending five weeks in Netflix’s global English-language top 10, including a rare three-peat No. 1, reaching 11.6 million views in its first full week of release.
That’s on top of another freshman drama series recently renewed by Netflix, Ransom Canyon, which spent four weeks in the top 10, peaking at No. 2 with 9.4m views in its first full week. (Fellow renewed freshman 2025 drama Forever also spent four weeks in the top 10, rising to No. 3 with 6.7m views.)
Waterfront Has this year, after one season, fared significantly better than the two other dramas that have been canceled so far, Pulse and Living Place, which both spent four weeks in the top ten, reaching No. 3 with 8.5m views and No. 2 with 8.8m views.
Netflix executives typically use performance and cost in their renewal decisions, with other factors like awards recognition, social media buzz, and how viewers tune in also factored in. In addition to the number of views, performance includes completion rates, which are not publicly disclosed. Sources close to the production told Deadline earlier this month that the rate for The Waterfront was good. I hear Netflix didn’t feel the viewership and completion rates were high enough to warrant a renewal.
For example, Ransom Canyon, starring Josh Duhamel and Minka Kelly, The Waterfront, starring Holt McCulley, Jake Weary, Melissa Benoist, and Mario Bello is a character-driven family drama.
Unlike Ransom Canyon, which is a Netflix production — as is Forever — Waterfront comes from Universal Television. It’s unclear whether the streamer’s renewal threshold is higher for an outside series; Universal TV secured quick renewals for two of Netflix’s most recent new scripted shows, The Man Inside and Season Four.
They are among a string of new Netflix scripted series to get second seasons in the past eight months, along with Warner Bros. TV’s Untouchables and Running Point, 20th Television’s Nobody Wants This , as well as Department D’s Slavery Beauty in Black, Ransom Canyon’s Slavery Forever , Slavery North of the North, Slavery, Vince Staples’ animated show Devil May Cry , and Canadian entries Bet and Geek Girl. In total, Netflix has renewed nearly 20 scripted shows during this period.
The Waterfront Season 1 scored a 68% on Rotten Tomatoes. Its premise: For decades, the Buckley family has ruled Havenport, North Carolina, dominating everything from the local fishing industry to the town’s restaurant scene. But their fishing empire is beginning to crumble as patriarch Harlan Buckley (McCallany) recovers from two heart attacks, and his wife Belle (Bello) and son Cane (Weary) dive into the deep end to keep the family business afloat. When their attempts spiral out of control and the waters are treacherous, Harlan returns to take over the team. Confronting her own demons, Buckley’s daughter Bree (Benoist)—a recovering addict who lost her son—enters a complicated relationship with one another that could threaten the family’s future forever.
Rafael L. Silva, Humberly González, Danielle Campbell and Brady Hepner also star in the series, executive produced by Williamson and Ben Fast for Outerbanks Entertainment, with Michael Narducci and Marcos Siega. Topher Grace guest stars.
