There are few Western shows made nowadays with as devoted a following as Longmire. The 21st-century horse opera (which, admittedly, features very few horses) takes a stab at modern-day Wyoming as it follows Sheriff Walt Longmire (Robert Taylor), a widowed lawman who stands for “honesty and integrity.” For three seasons, the program shone on A&E, reminding audiences that Westerns (even those set in the modern West) still have a place in the larger cultural conversation. More than that, Longmire proved time and again that there’s still a significant audience willing to watch them. But that didn’t stop the network from axing the program on a cliffhanger that would’ve kept fans up at night. So, what happened? Here’s what you need to know.
‘Longmire’ Was Cancelled by A&E for Questionable Reasons
There simply isn’t another neo-Western drama like Longmire, and even the show’s original network, A&E, knew that. When Longmire premiered in 2012, the network wasn’t prepared for the massive hit it had on its hands. Who knew that a show about a small-town lawman and his department would become a national phenomenon? While Longmire never got as much media attention as, say, Deadwood, the show built an impressive audience over the years. “Longmire has become one of the most compelling dramas on television with a devoted audience, and we are so proud of the show,” David McKillop, executive vice president and general manager of A&E Network, once told Variety ahead of the show’s third season. In fact, the show was the network’s “highest-rated original drama series of all time in total viewers,” and raked in about 3.7 million viewers every week during its second season.
With such impressive numbers, one might wonder why Longmire was cancelled after a killer third season with a cliffhanger that killed off one of the show’s leads, Bailey Chase‘s Branch Connally. It seemed like Walt wouldn’t be able to solve this case, and the show was headed for infamy as one of the many “cancelled too soon” crowd. Following A&E’s announcement, many believed that the drama was cancelled because the network struggled to find advertisers for the show’s 50+ demographic. After all, Longmire was mostly popular with older audiences (and a few of us younger guns who love a good Western too). Indeed, The Hollywood Reporter even ran a piece about why the “largest demographic in the country” deserves a show like Longmire — which, again, was a massive ratings success for A&E. It just didn’t seem fair that the network, which had built a solid audience with Longmire, would then drop the show in favor of a more youthful presence.
However, according to A&E, age had nothing to do with it. “The issue with Longmire is more about the ownership than the age of the audience,” one network exec told THR in response to their aforementioned article. “The studio model is broken and networks just aren’t able to monetize series that underperform in the key demos advertisers covet if they don’t own a piece of it.” It turns out, A&E tried to buy the series from Warner Horizon Television (the brand that owns the rights to the program), and the studio ultimately refused to sell. So, rather than see Longmire through (or at least give the show a chance to wrap up), the network cancelled the series entirely and moved on.
Warner’s Unwillingness to Sell ‘Longmire’ Caused It To Be Cancelled by Netflix As Well
Thankfully, only a few months later, Longmire would be renewed by Netflix for a fourth season. It wasn’t long before Season 4 gave viewers answers to the show’s toughest questions, and eventually the streamer greenlit two more seasons of the neo-Western drama. But no Western series can last as long as Gunsmoke or Bonanza, and so Longmire again fell into the bloody hands of cancellation, this time at the hands of Netflix. Why? Evidently, the streaming giant tried to succeed where A&E failed, and just like before, Warner refused to budge.
If you didn’t already know, Longmire was actually based on a series of Western mystery novels by author Craig Johnson. Though the show departed from much of Johnson’s original material, it remains beloved by fans of the books as well. In an interview with Cowboy State Daily, that author offered a behind-the-scenes look at Longmire‘s history with cancellation. “It quickly became one of the highest-rated, original-content shows they’ve ever had,” Johnson explained about Longmire‘s tenure on Netflix, where it raked in an impressive audience just as it had on cable. “Smooth sailing for two more seasons, and then guess what? Netflix wanted Warner Bros. to sell Longmire to them. Once again, Warner Bros. wouldn’t bite, but at least this time Netflix was gracious enough to allow the show a final season to wrap things up.”
While fans were still disappointed to see Longmire go (just in time for Yellowstone to dominate the Western TV market the following year), the biggest consolation was that Netflix allowed Longmire to end on a high note. The entire sixth season serves as an extended finale that ties together all the plotlines the show’s fifth season set up, ending the series on a largely satisfying note that simultaneously leaves the door open for more. “Goodbye is always implied,” Walt says in the finale (also titled “Goodbye Is Always Implied”), and fans of the program were no stranger to having to bid their own farewells to the Absaroka County sheriff.
Related
Could a New Streaming Home for This Hit Western Series Lead to a Revival?
Goodbyes may have been said, but they don’t have to last forever.
Fans Are Still Holding Out Hope for More ‘Longmire’ Stories in the Future
While audiences did finally get an official ending, audiences continue to crave more Longmire. In fact, the show’s recent move to Paramount+ has gotten this author hoping that maybe, just maybe, the streamer may be willing to bring the show back once more. Whether this occurs or not, Warner Horizon knows that there’s an audience for the program, even if they’re unwilling to revive it. But with how popular the genre has become in the last handful of years (most would credit Taylor Sheridan with this resurgence, but there’s an argument to be made that Longmire walked so that Yellowstone could gallop),
On the plus side, New York publishers have yet to cancel the Longmire novels on which the show was based. While fans of the show may recognize the clear differences between the books and the show, each new Craig Johnson-penned novel is as exciting as the last. Even better, he releases a new Walt Longmire story every year. In 2025, Return to Sender hit bookstands across the country, and it’s looking to be the most pulse-pounding chapter yet. With over 20 installments in the Walt Longmire Mysteries book series, there’s enough new material for fans of the television series to sink their teeth into until the folks at Warner Bros. come to their senses and bring Robert Taylor back for more.
Longmire is currently available for streaming on Paramount+.
Longmire
- Release Date
-
2017 – 2017-00-00
- Network
-
Netflix
- Showrunner
-
Hunt Baldwin
