10 TV Shows That Deserved To Become Cult Hits (That Didn't)

Before Westworld went on to become one of the hottest shows on the planet for a time, another sci-fi western by the name of Defiance was making a bit of a splash over on SyFy from 2013-2015.

Very much embracing the alien here, though, Defiance depicts Earth in the year 2046, a time which sees our planet playing host to a great many new alien species in the wake of the Pale Wars brought about after the Votans arrived 30 years earlier.

There's some rather cool ideas to be found within the $100 million sci-fi gamble, including what a terraformed Earth containing a great many species all trying to carve out a life for themselves would look like. And the sort of tried and tested 'rugged father trying to keep a young loved one safe in this dangerous world' dynamic found in Joshua Nolan and his adoptive Votan daughter Irisa also helped establish the show as a favourite for sci-fi fans.

But Defiance's massive production costs, coupled with a drop in ratings, ultimately left the show on the cancellation pile after its third season had landed. And rather than finding new life on the back of its end in 2015, the well-received show - which also spawned a long-running companion video game - wasn't quite able to break into the cult classic sci-fi category as the years passed by.