Netflix’s Military Show With 90% on Rotten Tomatoes Cancelled After Just One Season

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The comedy series Boots was released on Netflix on October 9, 2025; it was subsequently cancelled on December 12, 2025. The show was based on the memoir The Pink Marine by author Greg Cope White, and is set in 1990, where queer teenager “Cameron Cope” (Miles Heizer) is living a closeted life in Louisiana. When Cameron’s best friend, Ray McAffey (Liam Oh), decides to join the Marines, Cameron enlists alongside him. The problem is that at that time, queer individuals were not allowed to serve in the military, forcing Cameron to keep his sexual identity a secret as he tries to get through basic training and duck the watchful eye of his drill instructor, Sergeant Liam Robert Sullivan (Max Parker). Along the way, Cameron meets and bonds with other recruits who are being pushed to the brink (in every sense) but the brutal military training.

Netflix’s Boots Was Cancelled After Political Backlash

A show like Boots arrived at a very inopportune moment: Under President Donald Trump’s administration, as well as the leadership of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, the American military has undergone some significant changes in 2025. First, there was the conversion of the “Department of Defense” into the “Department of War”, followed by Hegseth laying down an entirely new mandate for soldiers’ decorum, behaviour, and a general refocusing of the military’s core values.

In that context, it’s not hard to understand why the Trump White House and Pentagon were less than excited by Boots hitting Netflix at the same time as the new military messaging. In fact, back in October, Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson outright referred to Boots as “woke garbage” in a press statement given to EW.

Going further, Wilson stated that “Under President Trump and Secretary [Pete] Hegseth, the U.S. military is getting back to restoring the warrior ethos. Our standards across the board are elite, uniform, and sex neutral… We will not compromise our standards to satisfy an ideological agenda, unlike Netflix, whose leadership consistently produces and feeds woke garbage to their audience and children.”

Boots Had Strong Numbers

Meanwhile, from a numbers standpoint, it’s hard to spot how cancellation made sense: As stated, Boots held high critical and viewer scores, and averaged a nice 9.4 million views during the first full week of release – ratings boosted, in part, by the fact that the show was made into a political lightning rod. The show hung in Netflix’s Top 10 slot for four weeks, peaking at the no. 2 position – all signs that point to a very successful launch for a new Netflix original. The socio-political backlash also made the series a buzzworthy topic on social media, further proving it had good legs under it.

Boots stars Miles Heizer, Liam Oh, Kieron Moore, Dominic Goodman, Angus O’Brien, Blake Burt, Max Parker, Rico Paris, Vera Farmiga, Cedrick Cooper, Ana Ayora and Nicholas Logan. Sony Pictures Television reportedly tried to extend options on key cast members to stall, but to no avail. At this point, it’s hard to see a path for Boots to find a new home.

Boots is still streaming on Netflix. How do you feel about the cancellation? Let us know on the ComicBook Forum!