Prime Video’s efforts to bring more and more YA dramas to the screen have been fortuitous. From The Summer I Turned Pretty‘s massive following, with Season 3 leading to over 70 million views just 70 days after its release, to Maxton Hall Season 1 breaking viewership records, the investment has been worth it. But not all of the streamer’s productions have been picked up for more seasons, in spite of their longevity on Prime Video’s Top 10 most-watched. That is certainly the case for Motorheads, a coming-of-age series that released in May and has garnered a faithful following, yet has been cancelled after Season 1.
Created by John A. Norris, Motorheads follows Zac (Michael Cimino) and Caitlyn (Melissa Collazo), two siblings who move into their mother’s hometown and are warped into the world of street racing. Their father, Christian Maddox (played by Deacon Phillippe in flashbacks), was a town legend. He was recognized for being one of the fastest drivers around, even outsmarting the police during a heist. No one had heard about him ever since the infamous car-chasing video that made him famous years back, but Zac and Caitlyn inherited his passion for cars. The series is the most reminiscent of early-aughts TV that has come out in recent years, capturing that nostalgic small-town ambiance, giving us juicy love triangles, and delivering a cliffhanger ending that left viewers craving a continuation.
‘Motorheads’ Reminded Viewers of Early Aughts YA Dramas Like ‘One Tree Hill’
The best way to describe it is a blend between Fast and Furious and One Tree Hill, the latter being a series that Norris was a writer on. The obvious link to Fast and Furious is the racing component of the show, with teenagers and adults getting drawn to street face-offs where the prize is often the possession of the loser’s vehicle. The need for speed comes naturally to Zac, who believes that he can be just as fast a driver as his father, and uses his abilities behind the wheel to stand up to Harris Bowers (Josh MacQueen), a school bully who happens to date Zac’s dream girl, Alicia Whitaker (Mia Healey).
As for Caitlyn, she isn’t necessarily interested in racing, but rather motivated to use her knowledge of cars to restore a yellow Dodge Charger that used to belong to her father. This passion project also allows her to become closer to her auto body shop colleague, Curtis Young (Uriah Shelton), who, despite wearing a leather jacket and riding a motorbike, isn’t the bad boy everyone assumes him to be.
Similarly to One Tree Hill, there is a generational aspect to Motorheads. Logan Maddox (Ryan Phillippe), Zac and Caitlyn’s uncle, owns and runs an auto body shop in Ironwood, Pennsylvania. He has a complicated relationship with racing because it was a passion that he shared with his brother, who remains missing. Although he is opposed to the idea of Zac following in Christian’s footsteps, he becomes a mentor to both his nephew and niece, as well as someone their mother, Samantha Torres (Nathalie Kelley) can rely on.
As with any good coming-of-age series, there are a few love triangles in Motorheads. There is Zac, Harris, and Alicia, whose dynamic reminds viewers of the Scott Brothers pining over Peyton Sawyer (Hilarie Burton) in Season 1 of OTH. Caitlyn, Curtis, and Brooke (Audrey Gerthoffer) will likely remind OTH fans of the infamous love triangle between Peyton, Lucas Scott (Chad Michael Murray), and Brooke Davis (Sophia Bush). The series also blends both current needle drops from artists like Olivia Rodrigo and Royel Otis with throwback hits from bands like Fall Out Boy and OneRepublic.
‘Motorheads’ Continued Popularity Should Convince Other Streaming Services to Pick It Up for Season 2
By utilizing YA tropes, incorporating racing culture, and exploring a conflict between characters that spans generations, Motorheads had all the elements for a series that could win audiences over. And it did to a certain extent. According to Amazon MGM Studios TV boss Vernon Sanders, in an interview with Variety in July, Motorheads had garnered positive results, with him mentioning that the show had a high completion rate. This means that most people who started watching it stuck around for the entire season. Sanders also shared that the series’ writers, along with writers of other YA titles like We Were Liars and Overcompensating, were already coming up with ideas for Season 2. Although he didn’t guarantee that the series would be renewed, he did indicate that the series was under consideration for renewal.
In spite of this, the news about Motorheads’ cancellation after Season 1 came as an upsetting update for those who enjoyed the series and were left on the edge of their seats with its bombastic season finale. Deadline reported that Norris and the rest of the creative team received Amazon’s blessing to discuss a continuation of the series with other streaming services. According to executive producer Jason Seagrass, the fans’ undying support is keeping the series’ cast and crew optimistic about finding a new home for it. Still, there haven’t been any updates about the show’s future since the end of August. With Motorheads staying strong in Prime Video’s Top 10, the hope is that this might be an indicator that the show is worth getting renewed by another streaming service willing to invest. The series boasted high ratings, reaching an average of 78% approval from critics and 96% approval from the audience on Rotten Tomatoes.
Getting praised for its action-packed scenes, emotional storytelling, and its family-centric themes, Motorheads didn’t seem to just resonate with young audiences but connect with adults eager to relive their glory days. The passion for racing hasn’t been something explored in other YA dramas, bringing a fresh new angle to a formula that never gets old. There were a lot of questions left unanswered by the end of Season 1, including what happened to Harris Bowers and whether Christian Maddox is still alive. Fans were even discussing some actors who should play the latter if there were to be a Season 2. Although we have to wait and see if the series might get picked up on another streaming platform, its success has proven that more audiences crave the nostalgic elements that Motorheads brought to the screen and are more than willing to watch a show they’ve enjoyed over and over, despite there being no guarantee of a renewal.
Motorheads Season 1 is available to watch on Prime Video.
Motorheads
- Release Date
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2025 – 2025-00-00
- Network
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Prime Video
