Paper Girl canceled after one season

Paper Girls
(Image credit: Amazon Studios)

Paper Girls has been canceled by Amazon after only one season.

The Prime Video series, created by Toy Story 4 and Thor: Ragnarok writer Stephany Folsom, hit the streaming platform in July. Based on the comic book series by Brian K. Vaughan and Cliff Chang, Paper Girls followed four friends who accidentally find themselves on a time travel adventure on Halloween in 1988. The girls encounter adult versions of themselves and are faced with the choice of either embracing or rejecting their fate.

The cast included Camryn Jones, Riley Lai Nelet, Sofia Rosinsky, Fina Strazza, Adina Porter, Ali Wong, Jessika Van, Jason Mantzoukas, and Nate Coddry. Brad Pitt also executive-produced the series under his Plan B Entertainment banner.

As is the case with most canceled shows on streaming platforms: the show was well-received by fans and critics alike – but did not amass a high enough viewer count. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the series failed to make Nielsen's top 10 original streaming rankings within the three weeks following its July 29 premiere.

Many compared the show to Stranger Things, namely because of the 1980s time period, the sci-fi nature of the series, and the whole kids-on-bikes thing. Since the comic book first debuted in 2015, it's possible that Paper Girls influenced Stranger Things – which debuted in 2016 – and not the other way around. The comic would go on to win the Eisner Award for Best New Series in 2016, and end its run in 2019.

For more bummer news, check out our list of canceled Netflix shows.

Lauren Milici
Senior Writer, Tv & Film

Lauren Milici is a Senior Entertainment Writer for GamesRadar+ currently based in the Midwest. She previously reported on breaking news for The Independent's Indy100 and created TV and film listicles for Ranker. Her work has been published in Fandom, Nerdist, Paste Magazine, Vulture, PopSugar, Fangoria, and more.