Apple TV+ Pulls the Plug on Jason Clarke’s The Last Frontier After Just One Season

Apple TV+ is making a year-end cut: according to multiple reports, the streamer has canceled 'The Last Frontier' after one season. If you were holding out hope for a second run through the Alaskan wilderness with Jason Clarke, that sled is parked.

What the show was

Clarke (Mudbound, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Zero Dark Thirty) starred as Frank Remnick, a U.S. marshal roaming Alaska's lonelier stretches. He stumbles on a crashed prison transport, the inmates scatter, and suddenly he's under fire while trying to keep his town safe. Pretty quickly, Remnick starts to suspect the crash wasn't random at all, but the opening move in a deliberate, larger plan with ugly consequences for everyone in range.

The reaction

Critic Alex Maidy was bullish on the first season and thought there was gas in the tank for more if the budget math worked out. He noted the show occasionally stretched believability, but mostly in the name of a good time, and called out the premiere's action as a high bar he wished director Sam Hargrave could have hit more often throughout. He also liked how the series made Alaska feel both unfamiliar and oddly homey, and said it was worth showing up for week after week.

'The Last Frontier is a welcome first season of what should be an ongoing series.'

That bit about budget isn't nothing. Big, icy action shows cost money, and even streamers with deep pockets weigh that against viewership. If you're wondering why something promising gets iced after one round, that's usually the unglamorous part of the conversation.

Who made it and who was in it

• Created by Jon Bokenkamp and Richard D'Ovidio, who also executive produced with director Sam Hargrave
• Cast: Jason Clarke, Dominic Cooper, Haley Bennett, Simone Kessell, Dallas Goldtooth, Tait Blum, and Alfre Woodard

Bottom line: 'The Last Frontier' had a solid lead, a pulpy premise, and flashes of standout action. It just won't be braving a second season.