Netflix’s Critically Panned ‘Deadwood’ Replacement Passes Major Streaming Milestone

Having had success in the Western genre with shows such as Godless and American Primeval, Netflix is facing a bigger struggle with the recent series The Abandons. The seven-episode series had a difficult production that saw creator Kurt Sutter exit with three weeks of filming left. Sutter is best known for having spearheaded the hit show Sons of Anarchy. After his departure, Netflix handed the reins to director Otto Bathurst, best known for his work on Peaky Blinders, which has done wonders for the service. After a successful debut, The Abandons found itself spiraling down Netflix’s global charts. However, it has managed to hold its ground domestically, where it recently passed a major milestone. The Abandons has now completed two full weeks on the streamer’s domestic top 10 list, which was mainly topped by Sean Combs: The Reckoning for that entire period.

Starring Lena Headey and Gillian Anderson in the lead roles, The Abandons follows the rivalry between two matriarchs in the 1850s. The show opened to poor reviews, and is currently sitting at a 30% score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes. The site’s consensus reads, “The Abandons may wield powerful lead performers, but the flimsiness of its characters, lack of originality, and ultimately fervorless material makes for a lackluster experience.” In her review, Collider’s Carly Lane alluded to the production difficulties, and wrote that “despite the immense talent brimming over from its leads, Headey and Anderson’s best scenes can’t make up for plodding pacing and an uneven focus that leads to the story’s best characters and elements being sidelined, with the season culminating in a sloppy race to the finish to tie up every dangling narrative thread.”

Netflix Is Trying to Tap Into the ‘Yellowstone’ Audience

In the wake of Yellowstone‘s success on Paramount+, several streamers have been trying to produce their own hit Westerns, or Western-themed family sagas. However, recent attempts by Netflix — Ransom Canyon and The Waterfrontspring to mind — have been rather hit-or-miss. Headey delivered a star-making turn in HBO’s Game of Thrones, while Anderson has experienced success with Netflix on the hit shows Sex Educationand The Crown, and the recent film Scoop.

The fate of The Abandons remains undetermined, but you can watch the show for yourself on Netflix, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.