Hulu cancels Sean Penn drama The First after one season

The Hollywood Reporter

The big-budget space drama from House of Cards creator Beau Willimon premiered to lackluster reviews last September, despite boasting a two-time Oscar winner as its star. The First is the second high-profile cancelation of a "one-and-done series" in as many weeks, following the axing of Sarah Silverman's I Love You, America. Critics complained that The First was a mission-to-Mars space drama that spent too much time on Earth while barely mentioning Mars. "It's not unreasonable to expect, having seen this launch at the end of season one, that we will (continue to) see the astronauts on the way — perhaps even get to the surface of Mars," Willimon told The Hollywood Reporter at The First's September premiere. "But, because we've invested so much time in Earth, as well, in a parallel fashion we can tell the stories of the people they left behind and who are working on the ground."