HBO's Canceled Game Of Thrones Successor Is Finding A New Audience Years Later

"Westworld" was initially touted as HBO's attempt at extending its fantasy genre dominance after the mega-hit that was "Game of Thrones." The dystopian science fiction Western drama started strongly but seemed to stumble just as things were getting interesting, ultimately failing to live up to the hype. This engrossing show from Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy is finally getting the recognition it deserves thanks to its sudden success on the iTunes PVOD, though it's sadly come years too late to save it from cancellation.

The first season of "Westworld" is the most critically acclaimed of the bunch with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 87%. That score dropped for Season 2 and again for Season 3, though what's interesting is that the fourth and final season bucked that trend, doing better than the one that came before it with the critics. Unfortunately, by that point, it was too late. The show was struggling with dwindling audience numbers, with viewers apparently growing frustrated with the increasingly complex twists and turns — the "Westworld" timeline is notoriously tricky to grasp.

Season 4 experienced a seismic 80% decline in viewership and "Westworld" came to a close with an ending that divided fans. Even so, nobody expected HBO to pull the plug on "Westworld," given that it had become one of the premium television network's flagship shows. Was the decision made too hastily? If the new surge in interest is anything to go by, the answer could well be yes. Users on iTunes have been devouring the show, which jumped up seven spots to number 16 in the charts in a single day.

The first season of "Westworld" was must-see TV. The writers delivered a complex plot set in two different timelines — one in the Old West, the other in the modern world. The big revelation that the Western timeline was simply a theme park and that the people working there were actually androids was a mind-blowing moment for viewers, and word of mouth meant that excitement levels were high come Season 2, especially after it was established that the androids had developed human consciousness.

Season 1 ended with the "hosts" revolting, teeing up the sophomore season nicely, but Season 2 failed to capitalize on audience anticipations. By the time Dolores (Evan Rachel Wood) was resurrected to become an architect of reality, a lot of audience members had jumped ship. The storyline was left in a hazy, open position, and what came next failed to suck people back in. However, it appears as though the lack of buzz is helping the show get a second life, with new viewers coming in with no expectations and actually enjoying the unexpected direction the story takes.

Could this renewed interest lead to "Westworld" coming back and getting the ending that the co-creators intended? There's no doubt that Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy would jump at the chance. Nolan described himself and his wife as "completionists" during an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. "We'd like to finish the story we started," he said. "You get the time that you get, sometimes it's as much as you want, sometimes it's not. I'm so f***ing proud of what we made. It was an extraordinary experience. I think it would be a mistake to look back and only feel regret [over how it ended]. But there's still very much a desire to finish it."