Port Protection Alaska will only be returning for one more season on National Geographic.
The residents of Port Protection, a small and far-off community in the north of Alaska, have been entertaining viewers with their unique, off-the-grid lifestyles for almost a decade on National Geographic’s Life Below Zero spin-off Port Protection Alaska. Or Lawless Island, depending on which side of the world you are on.
But while the hunting, fishing and Alaskan-ingenuity never stops in Port Protection, it has now been announced that this beloved show will be coming to a rather abrupt end.
What the future looks like for Port Protection Alaska
National Geographic has decided not to renew Port Protection Alaska for another season.
And instead of getting an official eighth or ninth season, Port Protections Alaska will instead cap off its time on television with ten special episodes which were filmed in 2023 (whilst the cast was busy filming the show’s most recent, seventh season).
Although this may not be exactly what fans of the show (or its cast) envisioned the end of Port Protection Alaska to look like, it seems like there is still some excitement to look forward to before the end of 2025.
When will the final episodes of Port Protection Alaska air?
According to the various rumors and speculation floating around the internet – fans can expect the final ten episodes of Port Protection Alaska to start airing as soon as January 2025.
This would certainly make a lot of sense, given that the previous seasons of the show have premiered as follows:
| Port Protection Alaska season | Premiere date |
| Season 1 | July 19, 2015 |
| Season 2 | April 18, 2016 |
| Season 3 | February 18, 2020 |
| Season 4 | January 12, 2021 |
| Season 5 | January 19, 2022 |
| Season 6 | January 10, 2023 |
| Season 7 | March 6, 2024 |
Who will be featured on this last season?
Since the last few episodes that will now air as Port Protection Alaska’s final season were filmed all the way back in 2023 (alongside the show’s most recent season), it is difficult to say which of the Port Protection Alaska cast members will make an appearance.
At this point, it is fair to assume that longtime cast members like David Squibb, Sam Carlson and Timothy “Curly” Leach will see the show all the way to its end.
This behind-the-scenes photo taken at the end of filming in 2023 also contains a few other familiar faces, including Morgan, Carl and their new baby.
Sadly, Mary will probably not be featured much during these last few episodes, as she moved away from Port Protection at the end of season seven.
The jury is also out on whether we will see much of Troy and Sarah, as they have now also seemingly moved out of the area recently.
Port Protection Alaska: Who is (and is not) still living in Port Protection
What the Port Protection Alaska cast have said about the show’s cancellation
The news about Port Protection Alaska’s cancellation has sent shockwaves through the show’s fandom. And some of the Port Protection Alaska cast members have already taken to social media to share their sides of the story.
David has already shared how much he misses the “comradery and the paycheck” that he got from filming the show, though he did add that “it will be nice to get some stuff done without my endless commentary and on my own timeline”.
Matt Carlson was considerably less diplomatic about his feelings in the comment section of this Facebook post. And even Morgan jumped on the “All that work and what did it get me” trend on TikTok.
Fans are still hoping that National Geographic will change its mind
The news that Port Protection Alaska has been unceremoniously dropped from the National Geographic lineup has not gone over well with longtime fans of the show.
Some fans (898 of them, to be exact) even went as far as to undersign a Change.org petition which implores National Geographic to reconsider their decision not to save the show.
And while this may seem like just a little too late, Morgan has also explained that the show has not officially been cancelled – it has just not officially been renewed.
This is an important distinction that means that there is still a small chance that the show could be brought back at some point in the future.
There is also still a very small chance that aspects of what fans love about Port Protection Alaska (including some of the show’s cast members) will make a comeback in the future as part of the original Life Below Zero show – though no such plans have officially been announced yet.
