‘The Killing’ just can’t be killed. AMC’s cult crime drama thriller premiered on the network in 2011, but was quickly canceled following its second season. Ultimately, it was revived for a third, but then canceled for a second time in September 2013. Two months after its cancellation, Netflix had announced it would be picking ‘The Killing’ up for a fourth and final season consisting of six episodes, because Netflix always saves the day. Joel Kinnaman, who stars on the show as Stephen Holder, recently spoke with the Los Angeles Times on why the switch to Netflix was a good thing. “The viewership of the show wasn’t as big as AMC might have hoped, but what I think Netflix and everybody realized was that the people that watched it really appreciated it. It meant something to them,” he said.
Joel Kinnaman says the final season of 'The Killing' was "liberating"
Because of the show’s dedicated following, online petitions surfaced to bring back the show for season four. One reached over 10,000 signatures. Now with the move to Netflix, how will it affect the show in general? For what it’s worth, the main roles are returning, as well as showrunner Veena Sud, so the main core isn’t going to change. What is going to change, however, may be the overall tone of the show. Now that it’s no longer on a network, ‘The Killing’ can basically do whatever it wants, and it’s planning on taking full advantage of that. "This season Holder gets to talk like Holder should have been talking," Kinnaman said regarding his character. "We can use whatever words you want to use. There's no rating. Sometimes you could feel a little held back by those limitations that were set up."
Continue reading: What To Expect From The Final Season Of 'The Killing'