Even when a series lasts for a relatively short period of time, it can produce a lasting legacy that goes on years after its finale. This became the case with Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, which only ran for two seasons and 31 episodes from 2008-2009. The series was a spin-off of the Terminator films, picking up after the events of Terminator 2: Judgment Day. While never a ratings hit, it did have a loyal fan base that campaigned for the show’s Season 3 return before the network ultimately pulled the plug. Now, over 15 years since the series last aired, creator John Friedman is reflecting on the cancelation and whether he was satisfied with its conclusion.
During a chat with Empire, Friedman was asked if he was prepared for the show’s cancelation and, even though he knew more stories could be told, the Season 2 finale was written in a way that could end the series where it was at while also allowing for a third season if they were picked up.
“I wrote the season two finale, and I thought there was a good chance that that was going to be the end. I wanted to write something that sat astride an ending, emotionally, and yet would allow us something to do if we did get a season three. I wanted to write an episode that was like, ‘Be careful what you wish for’. John loves Cameron, but it’s like Pinocchio, she’s not a real girl. So okay, well, what if he met the real human [that the Cameron Terminator was modeled on]? John never likes being John, he doesn’t like the burden of the mantle. So, what happens if he gets his wish? He shows up in the future, he gets to meet his dad, meet the girl he couldn’t have, but in human flesh. And nobody knows who he is, so he has no pressure. So it felt like it could end there, but that it wouldn’t.”
Season 2 of Terminator: The Sarah Chronicles Didn’t End on A Cliffhanger
Revolving around the lives of Sarah Connor (Lena Headey) and her son John Connor (Thomas Dekker), The Sarah Connor Chronicles focused on their journey to prevent the creation of Skynet, which could lead to the beginning of a nuclear war. After a series of events in Season 2, John time travels with Weaver (Shirley Manson), a shape-shifting Terminator in the guise of the CEO of ZeiraCorp, to locate John Henry (Garret Dillahunt), a T-888 sent back in time to murder John at the start of Season 1 when played by Owain Yeoman.
In the future, John comes in contact with different versions of Derek Reese (Brian Austin Green), Kyle, and Allison (Summer Glau), the latter of whom is known as Cameron and the Terminator sent back by John in 2027 to protect his younger self. The three don’t know John when they encounter him, and the series ends with John realizing the future has been altered, and he did not lead the resistance in the new timeline. Even though Friedman knows more could’ve been done with the show, he was satisfied with the ending on a personal level.
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“I was sad that we were canceled. I wanted to do more, but I also felt satisfied personally. I didn’t want it to just feel like the needle had been pulled off the record suddenly. I wanted it to feel like the song had ended. Even if the album hadn’t.”
The Sarah Chronicles had solid ratings from critics, registering a 76 percent on Rotten Tomatoes for its first season and a 94 percent rating for its second. The show also premiered to strong numbers, pulling in 18.3 million viewers and going on to become the highest-rated new series of the 2007-2008 TV Season. The original plan was to produce 13 episodes during Season 1, but the WGA strike reduced the start to just nine. The show ended with an average of 10.8 million viewers, respectable numbers, but a series of events would derail its progress in Season 2.
Due to various scheduling changes on Fox, the second season premiered on September 8, 2008, but it had a two-month break beginning in December of that year, seriously hurting its momentum. After originally being aired on Mondays, the show returned from its long hiatus in February 2009 but was moved to Friday nights, long seen as the kiss of death for most network TV shows. Ratings ultimately declined further to an average of 5.37 million viewers after the change, and with the series also being expensive to produce, according to the network, Fox ultimately pulled the plug and did not move ahead with a third season.
- Release Date
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January 13, 2008
- Seasons
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2