Time has officially run out for Terminator Zero, the Netflix anime released back in 2024.
Showrunner and writer Mattson Tomlin was recently asked on Twitter about the show possibly returning. Tomlin confirmed the series ended with its season one finale, saying it had a “tremendous” reception from critics and audiences. But as always, the kiss of death came down to viewership: “not nearly enough people watched it,” added Tomlin. He went on to explain that anime audiences “[generally] skew younger” and Terminator’s base is older, but Zero “asked them to meet in the middle. They didn’t in the way the corporation needed to justify the spend to continue.”
It was cancelled. The critical and audience reception to it was tremendous, but at the end of the day not nearly enough people watched it. I would’ve loved to deliver on the Future War I had planned in season’s 2 and 3, but I’m also very happy with how it feels contained as is. https://t.co/Dh7G6gkBF7 pic.twitter.com/dqCSXHIytg
— mattson tomlin (@mattsontomlin) February 13, 2026
Developed by Production I.G, Terminator Zero picked up in Tokyo during 1997, five years after the end of Terminator 2. John and Sarah Connor were nowhere to be found, with the anime instead focusing on the Lee family. The father, Malcolm, has developed an AI named Kokoro meant to compete with Skynet. While he debates what to do with his creation, a Terminator from 2022 hunts down Malcolm’s kids, their babysitter, and their time-traveling protector before Judgment Day comes.
Despite his plans to explore the future war in two more seasons, Mattson’s glad Zero ends in a self-contained fashion and had a good time making it. (He’s also thankful to Netflix’s marketing team for “giving a fuck and trying to really make the show work.” But for Terminator fans, it’s the latest blow to the series. James Cameron’s reportedly looking to revive it with a new take, but even if he steps back from Avatar after 2025’s Fire and Ash, it might still be a while before we see what other time-traveling, anti-robot adventures await. At least there’s some video games to tide you over until then.
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