Hope for ‘Heels’? Canceled Wrestling Drama Licensed to Netflix (Exclusive)

Heels might be headed back to the ring.

The drama, which was unceremoniously canceled along with a couple more series as Starz cleaned house in September, has been licensed to Netflix by Lionsgate Worldwide Television Distribution. With the acquisition, Netflix will have nonexclusive rights to the two-season, 16-episode library of the wrestling drama starring Stephen Amell (Arrow) and Alexander Ludwig (Vikings).

Sources also note that while Netflix has not renewed the series, the streamer could wind up doing so should Heels perform well on the platform. Those same sources also caution that a third season, even in success, could still be a logistical challenge. Amell — a die-hard wrestling fan who often would perform his own stunts on Heels — signed on in February as the lead in NBC’s highly anticipated spinoff of Suits. The offshoot of the former USA Network original is one of but five pilots in the works at NBC. Following the procedural’s breakout performance on Netflix, Suits: L.A. is fully expected to gain a series order at NBC, which would put it in first position for Amell.

Further complicating the issue is Ludwig’s availability. The actor is set to top the call sheet in the six-episode MGM+ sci-fi drama Earth Abides, a new take on George R. Stewart’s classic.  

Netflix is a natural home for Heels. The streamer has been in negotiations to land the series for the past few months as producers Lionsgate Television immediately shopped the show after its cancellation last year. Heels will pair nicely with WWE’s Monday Night Raw when the franchise arrives on Netflix in January 2025. The streamer landed WWE rights this January as part of a massive $5 billion rights deal that sees the former USA Network staple secure its new home on the platform for the next decade.

Netflix has been aggressively ramping up its sports and so-called “sports adjacent” fare this year. The streaming giant also has staged its own live sports events and teamed with Major League Baseball and the National Football League on docuseries following the success of originals like Drive to Survive.

The Heels deal is also a prime example of Netflix’s willingness to license “gently used” programing that may have aired elsewhere at a lower cost. The practice, which gained momentum during the COVID-era production shutdown, can also spawn success stories, with canceled shows picking up steam on bigger platforms. Netflix has revived a number of post-cancellation broadcast shows for original seasons, and the Heels combo could prove a good case study in the power of the streaming giant’s potential post-Raw algorithm.  

As for Starz, the pay cable network is currently in the process of splintering itself from parent company Lionsgate. The majority of the Jeff Hirsch-led cabler’s scripted originals are produced by Lionsgate Television, including the Power franchise, critical hit P-Valley, BMF and the upcoming Spartacus revival.