Another one bites the dust.
Netflix has officially pulled the plug on The Recruit after just two seasons, despite the espionage dramedy making a strong showing on the platform. The news was first broken by Colton Dunn, who played former CIA operative Lester Kitchens, on social media.
“The Recruit has been cancelled y’all,” he posted on Threads. “Such a bummer. I’ll share some pics and fun memories on IG but just wanted you to hear it from me. Thanks if you watched. I’m AVAILABLE NOW! Hire me for your TV story!!”
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The series, led by Noah Centineo, debuted in December 2022 and followed Owen Hendricks, a rookie CIA lawyer who quickly found himself knee-deep in dangerous international conflicts after a former asset threatened to expose her ties to the agency. Created by Alexi Hawley (The Rookie), the show had a solid cast, including Fivel Stewart, Aarti Mann, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Kaylah Zander, Kristian Bruun, Angel Parker, and Jesse Collin.
The second season upped the ante, picking up with Owen being abducted by Nichka (Maddie Hasson), the daughter of his former asset, Max (Laura Haddock). That abduction quickly spiraled into a bloody chain of betrayals, double-crosses, and assassination attempts—including by CIA operative Dawn (Angel Parker), who spent much of the season trying to kill Owen over his knowledge of her fake assets scheme.
And just when you thought things couldn’t get any messier, the season finale delivered a brutal knife fight between Nichka and Dawn, both gunning for Owen. Dawn had been ordered to kill him in exchange for a promotion, while Nichka had promised him to Russian security agency FSB for a payday. Only one of them made it out alive.
For fans hoping for a third season to tie up all the loose ends, Netflix had other plans. The shorter six-episode season—down from eight in Season 1—meant several storylines were already trimmed down, and now, with the show’s cancellation, the final cliffhangers will remain just that.
Netflix’s decision to ax The Recruit comes as a bit of a shock considering its performance. Season 2, which dropped in late January, racked up 5.9 million views in its first four days—earning the No. 2 spot on Netflix’s English-language TV chart, just behind The Night Agent Season 2. And it wasn’t just a one-week wonder. The show gained momentum in week two, pulling in 6.1 million views and 33 million hours watched.
Despite those numbers, The Recruit was hit hard by Hollywood’s recent strikes, which led to a two-year gap between its first and second seasons. That kind of delay can be a death sentence for any show, no matter how well it performs.
While The Recruit had its fair share of fans, Netflix has a history of giving shows a two-season run before pulling the plug (1899, The Society, and Warrior Nun say hello). The reasoning behind this strategy? The streamer hasn’t been shy about prioritizing shows that bring in not just strong numbers, but also sustained engagement—and apparently, The Recruit didn’t make the cut.
So, farewell The Recruit—you had the numbers, the action, and the intrigue, but Netflix had other plans.