Yahoo Lifestyle ‘How to Die Alone’ Canceled After One Season on Hulu; Creator-Star Natasha Rothwell Is ‘Baffled’ and Shopping Series Elsewhere (EXCLUSIVE)
“How to Die Alone,” the comedy series created by and starring Natasha Rothwell, has been canceled after one season on Hulu.
The series hailed from Onyx Collective, a Disney content brand that produces projects created by people of color and from underrepresented communities. Onyx gave “How to Die Alone” a series order in November of 2022 before releasing it in September 2024.
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In a statement to Variety, Rothwell wrote that she is “shocked, heartbroken and frankly, baffled” at Onyx’s decision. Though a source close to the studio indicates that viewership wasn’t strong enough to renew “How to Die Alone,” Rothwell argues that it was “an undeniable critical, creative and award-winning success.” Indeed, the series achieved a 91% on Rotten Tomatoes, with Variety‘s review calling it “skillfully crafted” and Rothwell’s performance “flawless.” It also won the Independent Spirit Award for ensemble cast in a new scripted series and has three pending nominations for NAACP Image Awards.
In her statement, Rothwell indicated that she is shopping “How to Die Alone” to other platforms, writing, “Representation isn’t just about visibility — it’s about ensuring that our stories, our existence and our cultural contributions are not erased.”
As the official logline reads, “How to Die Alone” starred Rothwell as Mel, “a broke, fat, Black JFK Airport employee who’s never been in love and forgotten how to dream, until an accidental brush with death catapults her on a journey to finally take flight and start living by any means necessary.” Conrad Ricamora, Jocko Sims and KeiLyn Durrel Jones also starred. Executive producers included Rothwell via her Big Hattie Productions banner and co-showrunner Vera Santamaria via her Welcome Stranger banner alongside Desiree Akhavan and Jude Weng.
Rothwell is best known for starring in HBO’s “The White Lotus.” Playing Belinda, she earned an Emmy nomination for Season 1 and is reprising the role in Season 3, which premieres Feb. 16. She also played Kelli while writing and directing on HBO’s “Insecure,” and previously wrote for “Saturday Night Live.”
Besides “How to Die Alone,” Onyx Collective projects include “The 1619 Project” and “Reasonable Doubt,” with upcoming titles including the comedy series “Deli Boys” and the documentary “Sly Lives! (aka The Burden of Black Genius).” Previously, the brand was behind “The Other Black Girl” and “UnPrisoned.”
See Rothwell’s full statement below.
I am shocked, heartbroken and frankly, baffled that Onyx has decided not to move forward with a second season of “How to Die Alone.” This is a tough reality to accept because the show is an undeniable critical, creative and award-winning success.
This show took me eight years to bring to life, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned in that time, it’s resilience. I’m not giving up. My team and I are committed to finding “How to Die Alone” a new home because stories like this matter.
Now more than ever, television that amplifies previously unheard voices, and that prioritizes hiring and casting decisions that accurately reflect the diversity of the world, is essential. Representation isn’t just about visibility — it’s about ensuring that our stories, our existence and our cultural contributions are not erased.
As Maya Angelou so wisely said, “You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.”
We are rising. And we are not done.
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