Television

“We riot at dawn”: Our Flag Means Death officially cancelled

By Alice Morey

10th January 2024

Max’s queer pirate comedy Our Flag Means Death (OFMD) has officially been cancelled after two seasons.

The fan favourite show followed the swash-buckling and often hilarious adventures of gentleman-turned-pirate Stede Bonnet (Rhys Darby) and his crew, who sail the seas to try and make a name for themselves as pirates while crossing paths with the legendary Blackbeard (Taika Waititi).

“Welp, I’ve got good news and bad,” creator David Jenkins revealed via social media. “The bad news is clear. OUR FLAG won’t be returning for a third season.”

He continued to praise the fans of the show and attributed them to the success of the production: “The second season was made possible by the enthusiasm of one of the most likeable fan communities in the history of this medium.

“Your voices made a difference, your art made a difference, your viewership made a difference in securing more OUR FLAG. Getting to share this show with you and watching you make it yours has been a dream come true.”

Jenkins closed his statement: “I’m very sad I won’t set foot on the Revenge again with my friends, some of whom have become close to family. But I couldn’t be more grateful for being allowed to captain the damn thing in the first place.

“Our Flag Means Us. Loving one another, pulling off some pretty weird and beautiful shit, and talking it through… as a crew.”

The announcement was meant with an outpouring of sadness.

One fan said: “Genuinely heartbroken, why does every show with great LGBTQ+ rep always get cancelled.”

One questioned: “Okay but can you film the third season on someone’s phone in a backyard with a kiddy pool as the ocean and put them in like a wagon for the boat so everyone can see what would’ve happened?”

Another added: “A huge thank you to our flag means death, for helping me come to terms with my queer identity. This show helped me so much in discovering who I am and taught me to be proud of myself.”

 

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A post shared by David Jenkins (@dvidjenkins)

A spokesperson from Max has confirmed the news in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter : “While Max will not be moving forward with a third season of Our Flag Means Death, we are so proud of the joyous, hilarious, and heartfelt stories that creator David Jenkins, Taika Waititi, Rhys Darby, Garrett Basch, Dan Halsted, Adam Stein, Antoine Douaihy, and the entire superb cast and crew brought to life.

“We also thank the dedicated fans who embraced these stories and built a gorgeous, inclusive community surrounding the show.”

Season one aired on US screens in early 2022 with the second season airing in October 2023.

OFMD also starred Ewen Bremner as Nathaniel Buttons, Con O’Neill as Israel “Izzy” Hands, Joel Fry as Frenchie, Samson Kayo as Oluwande Boodhari, Nathan Foad as Lucius Spriggs and Vico Ortiz as Jim Jimenez.

Oritz, who played non-binary pirate Jimenez, has shared a heartfelt BTS moment from the final day of shooting season two, to playfully mark the final drop of the Revenge’s sail: “Took this video as we wrapped S2 of OFMD. The last scene we shot was Izzy’s death. Shitty sailing with y’all (affectionately).”

 

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A post shared by Vico Ortiz (@puertoricaninja)

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