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Actors often have varying attitudes towards the roles that define their careers. Take Eric Dane, for instance, who is famously known for his portrayal of Dr. Mark Sloane on “Grey’s Anatomy.” Interestingly, Dane has admitted that he rarely watched the series. In stark contrast, Jensen Ackles maintains a strong connection to his character Dean Winchester from “Supernatural,” frequently engaging in conversations about the beloved franchise.
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It’s worth noting that both Dane and Ackles have ventured beyond their signature roles. They even joined forces in the 2025 Amazon Prime Video crime thriller series titled “Countdown.” During the production, the two actors developed a strong friendship, a testament to the sociable Ackles’ knack for bonding with his co-stars.
Tragically, the passing of Eric Dane on February 19 meant that additional seasons of “Countdown” were never a possibility. Yet, the show was already marked for cancellation, becoming one of the casualties in Amazon Prime Video’s 2025 list of axed series. This was not unexpected, given the platform’s reputation for canceling series prematurely. Unfortunately, the cast and crew were unaware of this decision during filming, leaving the storyline unresolved at the end of its first season.
“Countdown” revolves around an investigation into the murder of a federal officer, uncovering a vast network of deceit and corruption within high-ranking circles. Jensen Ackles stars as Mark Meachum, an LAPD detective leading the undercover operation into the murder, while Eric Dane portrays Nathan Blythe, the FBI agent supervising the entire probe.
The series concluded with Season 1’s Episode 13, titled “Your People Are in Danger.” In this episode, Meachum is misled into following the wrong suspect, a plot twist that unexpectedly became the show’s finale.
The sole season of Countdown ended on a major cliffhanger
Amazon Prime Video
“Countdown” follows the internal investigation into the murder of a federal officer, which ends up revealing a massive web of lies and corruption at the highest levels. Ackles plays Mark Meachum, the LAPD detective who was the on-the-field lead of the undercover investigation into the initial murder. Dane is Nathan Blythe, the FBI agent who is overseeing the entire operation.
The final episode of Season 1, Episode 13, “Your People Are in Danger” — which would retroactively become the final episode of the entire show — sees Meachum manipulated into tailing the wrong suspect.Â
Meanwhile, the newly-revealed actual mastermind behind the whole thing captures a member of Meachum’s team, someone who is especially personal to him. The episode ends in such a way that we don’t know what happens to the kidnapped agent, and fans were clearly meant to discover her fate at the start of Season 2. Unfortunately, with both the death of Dane and Amazon’s disinterest considered, there won’t ever be another season, making “Countdown” the latest series in a far too long line of canceled shows that ended on frustrating cliffhangers.