After the show was first released in 2023, Netflix’s Tour de France docu-series Unchained is set to be cancelled following the release of its third series this summer. This comes after a disappointing reception to the show’s second season in France alongside the decision to cover the Tour de France Femmes in 2025 according to reports from French newspaper Le Parisien.
The show, made by Box To Box Films, follows the ins and outs of a handful of Tour de France squads. The eight-part series was met with positive reviews within the cycling community, with some hoping for the show to become cycling’s equivalent to Netflix’s hit F1 series Drive to Survive. However, Netflix’s Tour de France production disgruntled some pros, including Tom Pidcock and Wout van Aert who were both unhappy with how they were portrayed in the final edit.
The third and final series of Tour de France: Unchained is set to be released this June ahead of the 2025 Tour de France, which will kick off in Lille on Saturday 5th July. Recounting the 2024 Tour, the final season of Unchained will include behind-the-scenes footage within UAE Team Emirates, Visma-Lease a Bike and Soudal-QuickStep among other top teams.
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Production thwarted
After the release of its first two series in June 2023 and 2024, Tour de France: Unchained was met with relatively strong support internationally, with the show cracking Netflix’s weekly top 10 in a handful of countries. However, the viewing figures for the second series in France were underwhelming. Given the show was crafted with a French audience in mind, and with the aim of consolidating the platform’s subscription numbers in France, the show required rethinking.
Although Netflix has not officially confirmed the show’s cancellation, those involved previously in its production have told reporters in France that they have not been contacted to discuss the possibility of making a fourth season, which would the 2025 Tour de France. Without production in the works, it’s looking increasingly likely that the show will conclude after its third series is released in June.
One French team told Le Parisien, ‘At the end of January, Netflix usually contacts us about filming with some of our riders in the spring,’ but the team hasn’t received a call from Netflix at all this year. ‘It seems that the message is clear.’
Another source told Le Parisien that the nature of cycling had become ‘too repetitive’ for Netflix to keep covering. The source, an insider within the Tour de France’s organisation, speculated that Tadej Pogačar’s dominance was off-putting to the show’s producers saying: ‘With Pogačar crushing everything, the suspense seems complicated to maintain.’
Since the Le Parisien report Daniel Benson has confirmed that Netflix will not be shooting a fourth series of Unchained at the Tour de France this July.
Tour de France Femmes documentary possible
While Netflix's interest in the men's Tour de France has dwindled, the Tour de France Femmes is likely to be the next cycling item on the streaming agenda.
Le Parisien reported that Netflix is already working on a documentary covering the Tour de France Femmes, which will apparently differ from Unchained as it will be a single film instead of a series.
Following on from the nailbiting finish to the 2024 Tour de France Femmes, the documentary is set to follow rivalries and key storylines throughout the 2025 race, with reports suggesting that production is already in the works.
