There was no official reason why DC Universe’s Swamp Thing series was canceled last month after airing only one episode. A lot assumed that maybe AT&T buying Warner Bros. had something to do with this decision, although nothing has been confirmed as of yet.
Despite the cancellation, DC Universe has been releasing new episodes every Friday for the remainder of the season. Derek Mears, who plays the Swamp Thing, appreciated having the moment to portray such an iconic character.
“I had to kind of let go as an artist because I can’t control any of that and I can just think the cup is half full because we did get to do the vision that James Wan originally had for doing a hard R horror drama for adults. And I’m very happy with that,” Mears said.
The #SaveSwampThing campaign blew up after news of the cancellation. Fans rallied on social media and started petitions to renew the show.
“I like to go through it and – I’ve never been a part of something, anything I create or I’m a part of, I always expect 50% are going to like it, 50% are going to like it because it’s art and it’s subjective, but I haven’t been a part of something where the majority of the response is being embraced and loved by the fans,” Mears explained. “Being that I love it, I’ll go in and check some of the hashtags and see what people are saying.”
He added, “The thing that I love about everyone trying to do the save Swamp Thing hashtag is that they kind of police their own going, ‘Don’t be a jerk about it. We’re going to be polite and we’re not going to bash people, but we’re going to move forward and try to make this a movement.’ I’m like, that mindset alone just tells me the quality of people that will watch the show and makes me want to reach out or work harder to pacify them because they have the right mindset and that should be rewarded and it’s a positive one and not a destructive one and I applaud that.”
Watch new episodes of the Swamp Thing on DC Universe on Fridays.