How are fans reacting to the end of “Smiling Friends”? Not well.

Smiling Friends is coming to an abrupt end, and fans are not happy after learning about their favorite show's fate.

Smiling Friends is an Adult Swim show that debuted in 2020 and was created by Zach Hadel and Michael Cusack. The animated comedy follows the four employees of a charity that's dedicated to spreading happiness.

Nearly two years after fans fell in love with the pilot, Smiling Friends' first season officially began. The third season debuted in October of 2025 and is expected to end on April 12th. Earlier this week, it was revealed that the season three finale will actually be the series finale.

“I’m gonna cut right to the chase,” Hadel said in a video message that was shared by Adult Swim. “This is not a bit, this is not a joke. Michael and I are here to announce that Smiling Friends will be ending after Season 3 is done.”

“To be perfectly honest, after we finished Season 3, Zach and I just both had the same feeling where we felt pretty burnt out after putting years and years into this, but also pretty accomplished,” Cusack added. “We just came to this feeling where we were like, ‘I think that could just be it,’ after Season 3.”

“We wouldn’t want to be doing more seasons half-hearted or burnt out or not feeling it,” he explained. “That’s not fair to us, and it’s not fair to the audience to give you guys fucking slop. That sucks.”

Fans react to Smiling Friends ending

Many fans are calling the show "cancelled," but based on Cusack and Hadel's video, it's really just ending on the creators' terms. In their announcement, Cusack said that Adult Swim has told them they could "come back in the future and make more episodes."

He also said that he knows this news is "disappointing" for fans, and hopes they "see where we are coming from." While some fans respect the decision, others are upset. You can check out reactions below:

"Bro, SMILING FRIENDS is officially done," @rendy_jones tweeted. "This is not a joke. Check Adult Swim’s Instagram. Michael Cusack & Zach Hadel just announced they’re ending it on their terms. Two episodes left dropping in April, but yeah, it’s over. Wow. Now I know how the TELL ME LIES fans feel."

Some fans see the ending as a good thing. "Honestly, I don’t blame them for their decision. It’s better that the show ends on a high note than be oversaturated like Rick and Morty," @thatbluedemon shared.

"It's better for [a] series to end on a good note and be viewed as an art classic rather than to air long enough to become the next Simpsons or Family Guy," @Petaar6 added.

However, others are refusing to accept the reality. "Maybe this is my cope mechanisn, but there's something fishy about this. I really don't think Zach & Michael would end the show so abruptly like this and fk over their crew, esp so soon after the announcement of seasons 4 & 5. Feel like this has to be some sort of bit," @angrycarrick posted.

The fans on Reddit are especially unhappy. "The diabolical part is hyping fans up for 2 more seasons," u/Zytrome wrote.

"I think it was like six months ago that they announced seasons 4 & 5 were greenlit and happening. The crew made life plans around that. You don’t update your resume and field job prospects when your current project is set to run for 4 more years; you do that when it’s winding down. This absolutely blows for the crew, and you are 1000% bullshiting if you act like you wouldn’t be pissed if that happened to you," u/husky_hugs added.

"Fewer episodes than season 1 of SpongeBob. Like be so for real, this show hadn't even hit its peak. I'm so disappointed," u/Regular_Fox_859 explained.

It's a dark day for many.

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