Cliffhangers keep audiences engaged and invested in aTV showuntil the new season releases. Science fiction television has some of the best cliffhangers, as the genre can push the boundaries of the imagination and reality of its audiences. A well-crafted cliffhanger can turn a mediocre show into a masterpiece. However,cliffhangers that never get resolved can be infuriatingeven years after the TV show ends.
Incredible science fiction cliffhangers can range from time-traveling hijinks having unexpected consequences and world-altering repercussions, to world-ending cataclysms that leave the fates of the beloved characters unknown. While some science fiction TV shows have meticulously planned and executed series finales thatend with cliffhangersfor creative reasons, many sci-fi TV shows ending on cliffhangers are unable to conclude their story due to sudden cancelations, leavingcliffhangers that remain unresolved forever.
8Sliders (1995-2000)
An Underrated ’90s Sci-Fi Show
Theunderrated sci-fi showSlidersis an adventure through space and time abouta group of travelers who can “slide” through alternative Earths in parallel universes.After the handheld device that allows them to travel between alternative universes glitches out and loses its ability to guide the travelers to their original home universe, the group is forced to slide through universes in an effort to return to their home.
Sliders
Cast
Sliders is a science fiction television series that follows Quinn Mallory (Jerry O’Connell) and a group of fellow travelers as they “slide” between parallel universes. With each new world presenting a unique alternate reality, the team encounters various versions of Earth, facing different challenges and societal structures. The series, which aired from 1995 to 2000, explores themes of consequence, diversity, and adaptation.
The final season ofSlidersgot off to a rough start. One of the lead characters, Quinn Mallory, played by Jerry O’Connell, exited the show after the season 4 finale.Slidersseason 5 ended with a major cliffhanger, as Rembrandt Brown (Cleavant Derricks) sacrifices himself by injecting himself with the dangerous virus that is deadly to the invading aliens Kromaggs.TheSlidersseries finale ends with Rembrandt’s fate left unknown, resulting in a frustrating and incomplete conclusion to the show.
7Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008-2009)
A Great Continuation Of The Movies
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chroniclesis a televisionspin-off of the groundbreaking and popularTerminationfilm series. The science fiction drama series follows the titular character Sarah Connor,played by Lena Headey, and her son John Connor (Thomas Dekker) as they work toward stopping the creation of Skynet, the highly advanced artificially intelligent computer system that will take over humanity and wage wars in the future.
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
This spinoff of the Terminator franchise follows Sarah Connor, her son John, and Cameron, a Terminator reprogrammed to protect John. Pursued by time-traveling Terminator assassins, they must cope with life on the run as well as the impending threat of Skynet.
Featuring time travel mishaps and high-octane action scenes,Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicleswas a worthy successor to theTerminatorfilms, but was tragically canceled too soon.Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles’final episode follows John as he travels to the future, and learns that he is no longer a widely recognized leader of the resistance against Skynet. John’s revelation not only changes the course of the show, it also reveals that each action taken in Lena and John’s timeline has major repercussions for the future.
6Salvation (2017-2018)
A High-Stakes, Sci-Fi Thriller
The suspensefulsci-fi thriller seriesSalvationrevolves around the shocking discovery ofan asteroid that is set to collide with Earthin six months and cause widespread global devastation. The high-stakes drama seriesSalvationis an underrated masterpiece filled with complex characters and thrilling yet terrifying.
The promising sci-fi thriller was set to have a groundbreaking and unique season 3 until it was canceled, ending the show on a cliffhanger.
The debate regarding the upcoming world-ending asteroid collision was expertly built up throughout the two seasons, until the jaw-dropping series finale. The team had finally seemingly finalized the decision to hit the approaching asteroid with a nuke and avoid the collision.
Salvation
Salvation is a science fiction drama series centered around an MIT graduate student and a tech magnate who reveal to a Pentagon official the impending threat of an asteroid set to collide with Earth in six months. The series explores the race against time to prevent catastrophe and ensure survival.
However,Salvationseason 2endswith a chilling cliffhanger, revealing thatwhat seemed to be an asteroid is an unidentified flying object (UFO)that gains significant ground and comes to a stop between the moon and the Earth. The promising sci-fi thriller was set to have a groundbreaking and unique season 3 until it was canceled, ending the show on a cliffhanger.
5Sunny (2024)
A Black Comedy Starring Rashida Jones
In this day and age, a creative and thought-provoking science fiction series revolving around artificial intelligence (AI) is a refreshing and relevant adventure. The black comedy seriesSunnyis based on the novelThe Dark Manualby Colin O’Sullivan. The seriesSunnyrevolves around Suzi Sakamoto (Rashida Jones), an American living in Kyoto, Japan, whose husband and son went missing in a plane crash aftershe receives a domestic robot and begins to uncover the truth.
Sunny
Suzie, an American woman living in Kyoto, Japan, grapples with the mysterious disappearance of her husband and son in a plane crash. Given a domestic robot named Sunny by her husband’s company, Suzie initially resents Sunny but soon they form a unique bond. Together, they uncover the dark truth behind her family’s disappearance, becoming entangled in a dangerous and hidden world.
The series premiered in July 2024 and was canceled in November 2024 after one season, not givingSunnyenough time to grow as a TV show and gain a dedicated fan base. Each episode of the season helped unravel an aspect of the central mystery and, in the shockingseason 1 finale, twists and turns make it clear that there were still several unanswered questions left to be explored. Unfortunately, thecancelation ofSunnyafter season 1means thatthe questions introduced in the show and in the cliffhanger will never be answered.
4Alphas (2011-2012)
A Frustrating Season 2 Finale
The untimely cancelation ofAlphashas resulted in one of the mosticonic and well-known cliffhanger endingsof a science fiction series. The superhero drama series follows a group of five superpowered people, known as the titular “Alphas” who investigate crimes committed by other Alphas. The thrilling cliffhanger in the season 2 finale ofAlphasturned into an unbelievably frustrating experience afterthe show was canceled before season 3.
Alphas
Alphas follows a team of individuals with enhanced mental and physical abilities who work under the U.S. Department of Defense. They investigate cases involving others with similar powers, tackling threats that ordinary law enforcement cannot handle while exploring the complexities of their unique skills.
The action-filled and thrilling episode follows the team as they hunt down Stanton Parish’s (John Pyper-Ferguson) bombs and attempt to disable every bomb in an effort to save the world. Things take a turn when one of the bombs goes off, causing everyone in Grand Central to collapse, excluding Gary Bell (Ryan Cartwright), who is unaffected as an Alpha as everyone surrounding him crumbles to the ground.
3Constellation (2024)
A Creepy Psychological Thriller
Constellationis a sci-fi psychological thriller TV show that followsa group of astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) and revolves around Jo Ericsson (Noomi Rapace) as she returns to Earth and realizes that not everything is what it seems.
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ThroughoutConstellationseason 1, we learn that there are two versions of Jo, one who is dead in space and another one who returned to Earth but is from the other universe. The intricate and complex TV showConstellationsees characters inadvertently jump between alternate universes and fight to return to their real home and loved ones.
Constellation
Constellation is a sci-fi psychological thriller written and created by Peter Harness for Apple TV+. After facing a crisis in space, Astronaut Jo returns to Earth only to discover nothing is quite the same - and that her sanity may be slowly slipping from her grasp.
However,the final episode of the sci-fi show reveals that the seemingly dead Jo in space is alive, and the alternate universe’s Jo might face pushback to her new life on Earth.Constellation’scliffhanger endingleaves audiences bewildered, and the cancelation of the series means that audiences will never get the chance to unravel the show’s mysteries.
2Dark Matter (2015)
The Show Was Exciting Right Up To Its Cancelation
Dark Matteris a sci-fi series followinga group of six mercenaries after they awaken in stasis pods aboard a starshipwith no memories of their past. The mysterious pasts of the compelling main characters and themercenaries' growing bond and adventures in space makeDark Mattera thrilling and entertaining science fiction series.
Dark Matter
Dark Matter (2015) follows a six-person crew who awaken on a derelict spaceship with no memories of their identities. With only a cache of weapons and a mission to a conflict-ridden mining colony, they must navigate their uncertain loyalties and unravel the mystery of their pasts.
Throughout the series, the stakes inDark Matterkept going higher and higher. The third and final season ofDark Matterrevolves around the escalating corporate war and the mercenaries' struggles with Four/Ryo’s (Alex Mallari Jr.) betrayal. TheDark Matterseason 3 finale set up an exciting fourthseason.
The incredibly thrilling cliffhanger ends with a massive space anomaly appearing and gigantic spaceships coming through would have been exciting if not for the show’s cancelation.
However,Dark Matterwas then canceled, making the season 3 finale a series finale. The incredibly thrilling cliffhanger ends with a massive space anomaly appearing and gigantic spaceships coming through would have been exciting if not for the show’s cancelation.
1The Society (2019)
A Mystery That Is Never Solved
The Societyis a sci-fi mystery TV show that follows a group of high school teenagers who return from a field trip early and find that the rest of the residents of the town have disappeared. The teens are forced to create a functioning society to survive and unravel the mystery behind the disappearance of the residents.
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The Societyeffortlessly balances drama, conflict, and tensionwith heartwarming romance and lighthearted comedic moments. ThroughoutThe Societyseason 1, the teens struggle to contact the outside world and figure out what happened to their town and its citizens.
The Society
One day in West Ham, Connecticut, the students of the local high school return from a field trip to find the rest of the town’s population gone. With a dense forest surrounding the town and no way to contact the outside world via phone or internet, the teenagers must formulate their own rules to maintain their own society and survival.
In the season finale, it is revealed that the real version of the town West Ham still existsand that there is a memorial plaque for the missing teenagers. The mind-boggling reveal provides hints for the central mystery and adds a sense of intrigue.The Societywas initially renewedforseason 2, but was then canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving the mysteries of West Ham forever unsolved.
