Eight sci-fi seasons with a total of 78 episodes will disappear from the Netflix offering this year. There is a good reason for this, but according to the series creators, there is still hope.
With Voltron: Legendary Defender, one of the longest-running sci-fi series will be leaving Netflix’s program on December 7, 2024. It ran for eight seasons, has 78 episodes and was presumably the streaming service’s first major animated series.
But why is the series, which is based on the anime Voltron: Defender of the Universe, being taken down? And what does the future hold for the franchise?
Why the animated sci-fi series Voltron is disappearing from the Netflix program
As the Voltron production team made clear in an official statement, the series’ disappearance from the streaming service was for good reason and was foreseeable (via ComicBook ). And there is good news for fans:
Voltron: Legendary Defender was not produced by Netflix. It was produced by DreamWorks Animation and licensed to Netflix. This license is set to expire. There is a possibility that the license will be renewed; talks are currently ongoing between all parties involved. Should the license not be renewed, DreamWorks is free to license VLD to another streaming platform.
In Germany, the loss of Voltron is even more tragic because, unlike in the US, the series cannot be purchased on Amazon in this country. No home video version has been released either.
In Voltron: Legendärer Verteidiger is about the fight against the militarily aggressive Galra Empire, which invades and enslaves other worlds. The only hope is in the all-purpose weapon Voltron – a giant robot that is composed of five robo-lions, controlled by five people.
Another piece of good news: a live-action version of Voltron is already in the works
Voltron could soon be competing with the Transformers in the cinema. A live-action Voltron movie is finally in the works after several failed attempts. Red Notice director Rawson Marshall Thurber is tackling this one with Superman Henry Cavill. Amazon MGM is producing the whole thing.
Fun fact: the franchise began as a Japanese anime series called Beast King GoLion, which was recut for the 80s series Voltron.
