Netflix's psychological deep-dive into real-life serial killers, Mindhunter is based on the true story of the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit and its founding . Those - Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff), Bill Tench (Holt McCallany), and Dr. Wendy Carr (Anna Torv) - interviewed serial killers extensively to learn how their minds worked and how to catch future murderers. Mindhunter was a brilliant mix of mystery and psychological drama, and it ended a bit too soon.

Mindhunter was majorly popular in many ways. It boasts an extremely impressive 97% average on intriguing real serial killers depicted on Mindhunter, makes it seem like the show was a guaranteed success, but Netflix canceled it after just two seasons in 2019. Now, five years later, executive producer David Fincher explained why Mindhunter was canceled.

Netflix Canceled Mindhunter Season 3 Because The Show Was Too Expensive

Netflix Couldn't Justify Mindhunter's Budget With Such Low Viewership

Executive producer of Mindhunter, David Fincher, explained why the show was canceled, and it boiled down to financial issues. As Fincher explained, Mindhunter was simply too expensive to make and too experimental to draw in wide audiences, so Netflix decided to cancel the show.

"We went as far as we could until someone finally said to us, 'It makes no sense to produce this series like this, unless you can reduce the budget or make it more pop, so that more people will watch it. We did not want to change our approach, so, respectfully, they told us that they were drawing a line under it.'"

It's not known how much each episode of Mindhunter season 2 cost, but it did have a notoriously difficult development that saw Fincher relocate to Pittsburgh for months to rework scripts and shoot scenes (via Variety). After that, Fincher said he needed some time away, and Mindhunter was never renewed after the executive producer's hiatus. Evidently, Mindhunter's critical reception and depiction of real-life serial killers at the height of the true crime infatuation wasn't enough to draw in viewers.

Mindhunter Would Have Had To Make Big Changes To Continue On Netflix

Mindhunter Would Have Had To Either Cut Its Budget Or Fundamentally Change Its Story To Get Renewed By Netflix

As Fincher's comments suggest, the executives at Netflix clearly would have required some significant changes be made to Mindhunter for season 3 to get bankrolled. Mindhunter was a very unusual show in the world of police procedurals. Fincher himself said it was the "portrait of the guy who loses his virginity in the world of psychosexual sadists," which, coupled with its unusual format, likely didn't help it draw in new viewers. Netflix likely wanted Mindhunter to become more like Criminal Minds, which is to say a police procedural focused on using psychological profiling to catch fictional serial killers in the act.

The only alternative that would have let Mindhunter get renewed, short of revamping the entire structure of the show, would be to severely limit its budget. As a period drama, Mindhunter's budget was likely inflated by the special sets, wardrobes, and CGI it had to use to match the late 1970s and early 1980s look. It's safe to say that a limited budget would have had some far-reaching effects on Mindhunter season 3. The show wouldn't have been able to explore as many serial killers as it wanted to, and it likely would have had to settle for fewer and less period-accurate sets and costumes.

Everything We Know About What Mindhunter Season 3 Would’ve Been Like

There Are A Few Likely Theories About What Mindhunter Season 3 Could Have Followed

After David Fincher's hiatus from the show and its cancelation, there isn't much that's known about Mindhunter season 3. Based on the season 2 finale, however, there are a few likely directions the story of Mindhunter season 3 could have followed. Mindhunter season 3 could have dove deeper into the personal lives of Holden, Tench, and Carr, with a particular emphasis on Tench's family drama. Mindhunter season 2 also ended in about 1981, so season 3 could have easily explored the psyches and hunt for notorious serial killers like the Sunset Strip Killers or the Southside Slayer.

Mindhunter season 2 also ended in about 1981, so season 3 could have easily explored the psyches and hunt for notorious serial killers like the Sunset Strip Killers or the Southside Slayer.

In his interviews, however, David Fincher also mentioned that he always wants to avoid doing what is expected of him. That means Mindhunter season 3 likely would have broken away from all expectations in favor of something surprising, but it doesn't seem like audiences will soon find out what was in store. There is still a chance that Mindhunter season 3 could happen, now that Fincher has made two successful films for Netflix: Mank and The Killer. Those movies may have restored Netflix's faith in Fincher, and the streaming service could give Mindhunter another chance.

Sources: Rotten Tomatoes, Variety