Perverse Show CRUEL INTENTIONS Canceled at Prime Video After One Season

Published: March 17, 2025

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Perverse Show CRUEL INTENTIONS Canceled at Prime Video After One Season

By Movieguide® Contributor

The murderous, sex-filled show CRUEL INTENTIONS has been canceled at Prime Video after only one season made it to the platform.

The show was a retelling of the 1999 movie of the same name, which was just as perverse. Each iteration of the story follows a pair of step-siblings who make a bet about whether one of them can trick their schoolmaster’s daughter into sleeping with them. While this is already detestable, the promiscuity quickly heats up, resulting in multiple sex scenes per episode, numerous murders and generally evil behavior.

While it is disgusting that this show was even ordered for one season, it is promising that it did not connect with audiences, and though more seasons were originally planned, it is now canceled. CRUEL INTENTIONS never broke onto Nielsen’s top ten streaming list and received a 24% on Rotten Tomatoes, per Variety.

The failure of this show is yet another example that proves audiences do not enjoy perverse, evil-to-the-core shows like Hollywood pretends. Prime Video is an excellent case study for this, as along with CRUEL INTENTIONS, the platform also features many edifying shows that perform very well.

Some of the top shows in the platform include REACHER and THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER, which although they feature questionable elements such as violence, these elements are sparsely used, mainly when they are needed to advance the plot. Furthermore, the platform is now releasing explicitly Christian content through Wonder Project, and HOUSE OF DAVID currently sits within the platform’s top 5 shows.

Furthermore, beyond the data from which content succeeds and fails, teens themselves have stated that they prefer content that is wholesome and more rooted in reality over perverse, over-the-top exhibitions. A study from 2022 revealed that only 4.4% of teens desire to watch “aspirational” shows, the category CRUEL INTENTIONS would fall under, compared to 21% desiring content that depicts real-world issues, like family dynamics and sociopolitical issues. Meanwhile a later study revealed 47.5% of teens believe sex and romance is too prevalent in shows and movies.

“American adolescents value media that reflects what they know about the real world, even while they prefer to see people that are different from themselves,” explained psychologist Yalda Uhls. “Teens want their media to show a world characterized by genuine diversity, relatable characters and heartwarming experiences.”