Netflix’s Lockwood & Co. Deserved Wednesday’s Success

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While Wednesday has become a massive hit for Netflix, another of their supernatural dramas was equally deserving of attention. The show, starring Jenna Ortega, brilliantly mixes different genres – think classic gothic style with intriguing murder mysteries and genuinely scary paranormal events. Despite Jenna Ortega’s standout performance as Wednesday Addams and a strong supporting cast, the show’s incredible popularity on Netflix has been a bit unexpected.

Wednesday is unusual for a Netflix teen drama with supernatural elements – it’s one of the few that’s lasted beyond the first or second season. Netflix has cancelled many well-liked and critically praised shows in this genre recently, including Warrior Nun, Fate: The Winx Saga, First Kill, The Midnight Club, The Order, and Dead Boy Detectives. It’s possible Netflix expects too much from these shows, as very few Netflix Originals will ever be as popular as Wednesday or the sci-fi drama Stranger Things. But among all these cancellations, one is particularly noteworthy.

Released in January 2023, Lockwood & Co. presents a Britain haunted by ghosts. But there’s a twist: only children and teenagers can see, hear, battle, and sometimes even talk to them. The story follows three gifted teens in London who start their own ghost-hunting agency, working to gain clients and compete with the larger, more established paranormal investigation companies in the country.

Rotten Tomatoes Critics’ Score Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score
Wednesday 80% 81%
Lockwood & Co. 93% 94%

With careful storytelling over eight episodes, Lockwood & Co. builds a truly captivating world, making it one of Netflix’s most well-paced paranormal horror series. The show features a genuinely interesting central mystery, and it doesn’t hold back on the scares—one particularly frightening scene in a haunted mansion includes dripping blood and realistically portrays the characters’ fear.

It’s a shame Lockwood & Co. didn’t get a second season – the show could have finished its story with just two more seasons on Netflix.

Lockwood & Co. Is One Of Netflix’s Best Book Adaptations

Lockwood & Co. is a fantastic show, and it’s also one of the best adaptations of a book series currently on Netflix. The series is based on the five Lockwood & Co. novels by Jonathan Stroud, which were originally published between 2014 and 2017. The show’s single season cleverly combines the storylines from the first two books, The Screaming Staircase and The Whispering Skull.

Adapting the books to a show meant some minor plot points had to be cut, but Lockwood & Co. still tells a compelling story. The show does a fantastic job of introducing Stroud’s world of ghosts, smoothly setting up the main storyline and characters without feeling rushed or confusing. It perfectly captures the spooky, suspenseful, and distinctly British tone of the books, along with Stroud’s dark and witty humor. Lockwood & Co. isn’t just for young audiences—adults will enjoy it too.

Netflix consistently excels at casting actors to portray characters from books, and Lockwood & Co. is another success story. The three leads – Cameron Chapman as the charming Anthony Lockwood, Ali Hadji-Heshmati as the thoughtful George Karim, and Ruby Stokes as the courageous Lucy Carlyle – are all perfectly suited for their roles. Stokes, who left her part in Bridgerton to star in Lockwood & Co., portrays a remarkable and understated strength. It’s surprising to learn that Lockwood & Co. was Chapman’s first – and only – television role, as he’s incredibly impressive as Anthony Lockwood. Heshmati skillfully balances George’s grumpy and withdrawn personality with his enthusiastic and boundless curiosity.

Despite doing so much right, the Netflix series Lockwood & Co. was unfortunately canceled, even though people are still finding and enjoying it. A petition to save the show has gained over 50,000 signatures, with people signing it just recently. The first season did a great job of setting up the story from the books, and the show realistically only needed two more seasons to finish the narrative – it really deserved that opportunity. Luckily, viewers who want to know what happens next can read Jonathan Stroud’s excellent book series.

All episodes of Lockwood & Co. are streaming now on Netflix.

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2026-04-28 18:43