Netflix's I Am Not Okay With This was originally slated to have two seasons, but unfortunately, this will not be the case. Season 1 released early this year in February 2020, right before the COVID-19 pandemic really hit the United States and put all entertainment production on pause. While the creators had already written and planned for this second season , they eventually realized it would cost more than it was worth.
I Am Not Okay With This is based on a comic by Charles Forsman. Season 1 of the live action adaptation follows Sydney Novak, a teenager dealing with the everyday woes of growing up along with her burgeoning superpowers. The show created a lot of mystery and suspense around the character, garnering a steady following. Fans were eager to see what the next chapter would hold for Sydney and friends.
Sadly, fans will never get to see that next chapter, as showrunner Jonathan Entwistle has confirmed the cancellation of Season 2, explaining exactly why they chose to do so in a frank interview with Insider. As with any other film or series, the production of I Am Not Okay With This was greatly impacted by COVID-19. When March hit, the team had to move out of their offices, but still continued to plan for Season 2 and ended up finishing the script. But ultimately, when analyzing the costs, it just wasn't worth going through with it. In the aforementioned interview, Entwistle said, "We were budgeting, we were ready to roll. The show was due to start shooting in May/June and obviously it got delayed. We just realized that to COVID-proof the show was going to cost a lot more money. I think I've seen a few people talking and the figures are about right: It's about anywhere between $5 to $10 million per season of television for the PPE, and for the testing, and for the systematic changes with which to make it safer."
Entwistle was also asked if he had considered simply delaying Season 2 instead of cancelling it altogether. He said they had, but that it would also cost too much money. He explained, "Once you go over a certain period of time from when you said you were going to shoot, it incurs quite big costs to pay the actors to keep them," the showrunner explained. "Netflix was basically saying we're paying large groups of filmmakers and actors to remain doing nothing."
I Am Not Okay With This did gain a decent following and Netflix wanted it to essentially be a Stranger Things replacement series; however, the show just wasn't up to that caliber. The audience was not nearly as vast as that of Stranger Things, so this replacement attempt would be quite difficult. That shortcoming mixed with the financial difficulties and delays brought on by the pandemic have caused the downfall of Season 2.
I Am Not Okay With This was officially canceled on August 21, 2020.