The mythology in “Westworld” had become increasingly overwrought as the show went on. The series’ ratings dropped off by half after season 2, sliding from an average of 1.6 to 0.8 viewers as people grew impatient with the convoluted storyline. Like a lot of viewers, I stopped keeping up with “Westworld” after season 3; it was a chore to get through, and the last time I really spent any time watching any part of the show was when the season 4 trailer hit earlier this year. I did read our own Sarah Milner’s review of “Westworld” season 4, which called it “a case of diminishing returns,” and it seemed like I wasn’t missing much.
While the creative people involved in “Westworld” and its fans may be frustrated to see it canceled this close to the finish line, other beloved HBO shows like “Carnivále” and “Deadwood” have seen their narratives interrupted after only two or three seasons. With “Westworld” season 4 hemorrhaging even more viewers, bringing it down to 0.03 million, a fraction of its original audience of 1.8 million, it’s frankly not all that surprising that HBO decided to stop pouring money into it.
One thing “Westworld” did have going for it was its production value, but that made it expensive to shoot, with season 3 carrying an estimated budget of $100 million for eight episodes. Paying the cast $10 to $15 million instead of that seems like it was just a way for HBO to cut its losses and move on from a show that should have probably ended after its first season, anyway, back when it was actually still set in the fictional theme park that gave the series its title.