Netflix’s seriesThe Recruithas been canceled after just two seasons. The action thriller followed CIA recruit Owen Hendricks, a lawyer who becomes increasingly involved in dangerous situations as a result of his inexperience.The Recruit’s castwas led by Noah Centineo, whose onscreen charisma helped keep the series feeling quick and exciting.
The Recruitseason 2 left questions unansweredas a natural setup for a third season, although the main case itself was resolved at the end of season 2. Considering that both seasons 1 and 2 were standalone, self-contained stories, it seemed likeThe Recruitwas positioning itself as an anthologyshow likeReacherorJack Ryan. Unsurprisingly, given the positive response to the show and the potential to tell numerous other stories about Owen’s time with the CIA, season 3 seemed like a real possibility, but that has all changed now.
Netflix Cancelled The Recruit Just Five Weeks After The Release Of Season 2
Season 2 Set Up Noah Going Into Other Adventures
The Recruitseason 2 was released on Netflix on June 04, 2025, and the series immediately rocketed into the streamer’s top 10 charts. In fact,season 2 remained in the top 10 for three weeks, but that was not enough time forThe Recruitto garner the attention it needed for renewal. Netflix has now announced that the series will not return, meaning thatThe Recruit’s season 2 endingis now the end of the show. Sadly, it seems that we will never get to know what happens next for Owen.
10 Great Spy Movies To Watch If You Loved Netflix’s The Recruit
The Recruit has rejuvenated the spy thriller genre, hitting the Netflix’s global top 10 this year. Here are 10 movies to see if you enjoyed it.
Before the cancellation, updates surrounding the potential for The Recruit season 3 seemed fairly positive, with the show’s creator, Alexi Hawley, stating (viaDeadline) that he felt “a lot of goodwill inside Netflix towards the show and towards Noah,” since the actor had first become famous through the Netflix movieTo All the Boys I’ve Loved Before. Since the show seemed to have a lot of potential to explore further stories about Noah, and Nichka and Jang Kyun in particular, the cancellation seems to be more a result of viewership than a reflection of the show’s potential.
Was The Recruit Cancelled Because Of Viewership?
As of the time of writing this article, Netflix has yet to confirm the exact reason forThe Recruit’s cancellation, but based on the past decision-making of the company, viewership seems like the most likely reason. According to data fromWhat’s On Netflix,The Recruitseason 2 saw significantly lower viewership than season 1.Whereas season 1 saw 7.3 million views, season 2 saw only 5.9 million.
Likewise, this difference was also visible in the number of hours watched, with the new season generating 31.8 million hours compared to season 1’s 52.3 million, although season 2 is shorter. Additionally, when compared to season 1,The Recruitseason 2 did not have the same jump in viewership between the first and second weeks, which indicates that new viewers were not beginning the show later after seeing its popularity.
While the series being in the top 10 was a good sign, it did not actually indicate long-term popularity, which likely contributed to its ultimate cancellation.
While the series being in the top 10 was a good sign, it did not actually indicate long-term popularity, which likely contributed to its ultimate cancellation. However, it is still worth mentioning that season 2 actually fared much better with critics, garnering a 92% score on Rotten Tomatoes compared to season 1’s 68%.
What The Recruit’s Cast & Crew Have Said About The Cancellation
Several People Involved In The Series Have Already Expressed Disappointment
Immediately following the news ofThe Recruit’s cancellation, the series' cast and crew have already begun to speak about it. Colton Dunn, who starred as Lester in the series, posted onThreadsto share the news with his followers, stating that it was “such a bummer” to see the cancellation come so close after the premiere of season 2 and promising to share pictures from behind the scenes. Likewise, Alexi Hawley took toInstagramto share his thoughts.
Hawley’s lengthy message, in particular, is very touching as the creator expressed his love for the project and everyone who worked on it. He outlines how special it was for all the circumstances to align to make a show happen and thatThe Recruitwas the culmination of the hard work of so many individuals. It seems likely that more cast and crew of the series will speak about it in the coming days, but, sadly, their positive memories seem to be the last time that audiences will get to hear aboutThe Recruit.
