The FX network on Monday, announced that the mind-bending superhero drama, Legion, will officially be coming to a close with its upcoming third and final season. Noah Hawley — of Emmy award winning Fargo fame — created the series, which will return at 10/9c on June 24th. This will also be the second X-Men based TV series to be officially discontinued after FOX’s, Gifted.
Back in winter during the Television Critics Association press tour, FX CEO John Landgraf mentioned to reporters that “Noah Hawley had always considered Legion to be a three-season show and he has confirmed that he’s going to stick with his plan,” right up to its final season.
Legion stars Downtown Abbey alum Dan Stevens, as the mutant David Haller — Professor X’s illegitimate son for those who are unfamiliar with the comic book canon. Throughout the series, he has spent most of his life in mental institutions, before eventually discovering that his mental illnesses are the manifestation of his latent mutant abilities. The supporting cast includes Rachel Keller as David’s love interest Syd, Aubrey Plaza as Lenny/Shadow King and Jean Smart as Melanie Bird.
Season 2 premiered last April, and wrapped up with David finally coming to terms with his powers, despite several others trying to prevent him from doing so. After accepting his more evil side, David runs off with Lenny leaving Syd and the Summerland crew behind.
Debuting in February 2017, Legion was renewed for a second season the following month almost immediately, with FX’s orginal programming president Eric Shrier giving the series a glowing review:
Legion has redefined the superhero drama and exceeded all expectations as the intensity and revelation build through the second season. We are incredibly proud of Noah Hawley’s achievement and are honored to continue the series as it pushes the boundaries of conventional television storytelling. We are also grateful for the contributions of our executive producers, John Cameron, Lauren Shuler Donner, Simon Kinberg, and Jeph Loeb with Marvel Television, as well as our outstanding cast and crew of this groundbreaking show.
But despite fans appreciating the series’ visual aesthetics as well, Legion has been a huge critical and viewership failure for the network in its second season outing. The series’ swan song will hopefully be a fitting end for the show and allow the newly minted Disney owned X-Men properties, to have a new creative life and less confusing interpretation going forward.
TvLine originally reported this story.