The Following was a Fox crime drama that centers on a cat and mouse game between an FBI agent and a serial killer hellbent on exacting his revenge. Sure, it never achieved the kind of success enjoyed by the likes of Dexter, Breaking Bad, 24, or True Detective. Nonetheless, there were high hopes for the show, especially since it sees Kevin Bacon take on a lead television role after mostly dabbling in film (and becoming a victim of a Ponzi scheme).
Unfortunately, the show was axed after running for three seasons. And even today, fans are wondering why the show got canceled just as the show’s final episodes for its season three was set to air.
It Was Almost Like The Lead Role Was Written For Kevin Bacon
Kevin Williamson, the man behind the series, knew that it was critical for them to cast the right person for the role of the FBI agent. And he really couldn’t think of anyone else but Bacon. “I had said, just days before, ‘We need to get someone like Kevin Bacon because he’s got the gravitas. We need someone who’s a movie star to come in and play this part. Anyone else is just going to be silly,’” Williamson explained during an interview with Collider. “I wanted him to have weight from the damage, and all that stuff.”
It just so happens that the two have the same representation, WME, and they were eager to have Williamson and Bacon work together. “And they go, ‘Well, why don’t we give it to Kevin Bacon?’” Williamson recalled while speaking with Assignment X. “I’m like, ‘Oh. I didn’t think he was doing TV.’ And then he read it and he wanted to meet me.”
What Williamson didn’t know was that Bacon had become interested in doing a TV role after becoming a fan of series such as Homeland, Breaking Bad, The Closer, and Game of Thrones. “All of these shows have become really important in my world,” Bacon explained while speaking with ItsMuchMore. “So I said, ‘Maybe it’s time for me to throw my hat in the ring and do television?’” That said, Bacon wasn’t exactly keen on working on anything that needed 22 to 24 episodes. Fortunately, The Following wasn’t like that. “I was told they were only going to do 15 episodes in the season – and I jumped on board immediately. It was a no-brainer.”
Why Was The Following Cancelled After Three Seasons?
Bacon’s casting in The Following certainly resulted in a lot of buzz early on. Some may even say that the actor set the trend for shorter-order series that get headlined by some of the biggest Hollywood movie stars today. That said, it eventually became evident that The Following could not thrive on Bacon’s star power alone.
While the series started off strong (it reportedly drew in nearly 10 million viewers in the beginning), it saw a steady decline in audience since its premiere. In fact, reports indicate that its second season only averaged 5.2 million viewers while season three only managed to secure an estimated 4.8 million in viewership. The performance may not have been the most impressive in tv history, but it was decent, at the very least. Unfortunately, however, the numbers continued to decline further. During its third season, viewership for The Following reportedly struggled to reach three million, prompting an eventual cancellation from Fox.
Following news of the show’s cancellation, Bacon took to Twitter with the message, “Big love to all of our loyal fans. It's been an honor to work for you. Sweat, tears, and lots of Blood! Enjoy the final four.” He also shortly followed this up with tweets addressing the show’s crew and Williamson himself.
At one point, Warner Bros Television, with whom Williamson has a deal with, had reportedly tried to shop the series to Hulu although that never seemed to work out. That said, Netflix did agree to air the series, but it was pulled out of the streaming platform back in 2018. At the moment, the show doesn’t appear to be available on other streaming services.
Meanwhile, since The Following ended, Bacon hasn’t slowed down. In fact, he has gone on to star in more movies and series, including City on a Hill and No Activity most recently. Bacon is also due to come out in several upcoming films. At the same time, the actor has also expressed an interest in joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) after he was referenced in both Guardians of the Galaxy and Avengers: Infinity War. In fact, when asked about making a cameo in the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Bacon already worked with Guardians director James Gunn once), Bacon told Esquire, “I would love to be a part of that.” Both his fans and Marvel fans probably feel the same way.