Why won't there be Your Honor season 3? Reasons why the series ended with two seasons

Good news and bad news for fans, Bryan Cranston’s legal drama Your Honor has just arrived on Netflix, but Your Honor season 3 is still not on the cards.

Cranston has recently shared with his fans via X on Tuesday, May 28, that his Showtime drama Your Honor will start streaming on Netflix. Both season 1 and 2 will be available for viewers on the streaming platform starting May 31.

Sadly for fans of the show who have been waiting for a continuation of last season’s cliffhanger, a third installment is still out of the question. After the crime drama ended in March 2023, fans have been wondering when a third installment would follow.

And without any word uttered about a cancellation or renewal, viewers are left wondering.

The primary reason Your Honor season 3 never happened is that it wasn’t supposed to be a multi-season show.

---

Reasons there won’t be Your Honor season 3

Season 1 debuted in 2021, starring Bryan Cranston as Judge Michael Desiato, whose son got entangled with the mafia.

The drama series, which aired on the Showtime cable channel, was a success, and a renewal was given a green light. Premiering January 2023 was the show’s second and final season.

Let’s explore the reasons why the fate of Your Honor season 3 still hangs in the balance.

---

Bryan Cranston is not planning to reprise his starring role for Your Honor season 3

Initial comments from the show’s star solidified the end of the series in season 2. During an appearance on Dax Sheppard’s Armchair Expert podcast in June 2022, he talked about the upcoming second season of his legal drama.

“I am [currently] preparing for the second and last season of Your Honor, which is a limited series that I did for Showtime. As they tell me, it got higher ratings than any other series they’ve ever had—and so, one more season of that.”

Bryan Cranston (Image via Eamonn M. McCormack/Getty Images)

Besides the definitive cap Cranston has put on the show, he later mentioned “some discussion” happening in terms of another renewal for the series in an interview with Deadline.

The actor noted that there is interest from Showtime, but for him, he’s not keen on reprising the role, although he would be very interested to be part of the show as a producer.

“If it happens, fantastic but It’d have to be some great reason to keep expanding in this world and to find out where the allegiances are. I’d be very interested in producing that. I don’t know being in it because my guy’s back in prison.”

Ultimately, it’s for Showtime to decide to renew Your Honor season 3 with or without Cranston in the starring role.

---

It was never supposed to be a multi-season show

The decision to not proceed with the third season didn’t happen due to a sudden cancellation. Instead, it was a choice by its creators that is more in line with the original plan for the show. Your Honor was originally conceived and written as a limited series, a “one season and done” show.

Season 1 was supposed to be the start and the finale of the adapted Israeli television series Kvodo for American TV by Peter Moffat.

However, with the show getting critical acclaim and high viewership, not to mention fans eagerly waiting for what’s next for Judge Michael after the season 1 finale’s shocker, the show was renewed for a second season.

Considering the show was supposed to end at season 1, the second installment was already a treat and there was no real expectation of another season beyond that. Hence, while some fans are left hoping for a third installment, it’s also not shocking news that season 3 was never confirmed.

---

Drop in viewership

As per the Nielsen rating, season 2 averaged a 0.05 rating and 285,000 viewers, which saw around a 39% drop from the first season’s 0.08 average and 591,000 viewers.

Taking into account that season 2 only got the green light because of season 1’s popularity and success, the significant decrease in viewership likely contributed to the lack of Your Honor season 3.

---

Several months have passed since the season 2 finale aired, and the network’s silence only adds to the uncertainty surrounding a possible Your Honor season 3.

That said, while the crime drama is not making a comeback for a third season anytime soon or at all, as mentioned above, all episodes from Your Honor seasons 1 and 2 are now available for streaming on Netflix.