Bye, ‘Shadowhunters’: The cast speaks

The final bow for Shadowhunters arrived on May 6, 2019, when the two-hour series finale aired on Freeform. The cast used those last weeks to send direct messages to the fans who had kept the show alive through three seasons of demons, romance, and found family. Their words captured the immediate weight of an ending while hinting at the connections that would last far beyond the final frame.

Kat McNamara (Clary Fairchild/Morgenstern/Fray)

“Hey, Angels. I just wanted to take a moment to say thank you so much for welcoming us into this fandom, for coming on this journey with us, and for making this experience such a beautiful one for me to have the privilege to observe. You are such an amazing fandom. We love you so much. The way that you encourage each other and find a way to help each other find love and acceptance in themselves and in others, the way you throw the fan art around like confetti — it’s amazing. It’s really a celebration of unity, that is something we need more of in this world. So, thank you for allowing me to be a part of that.” McNamara has since called the series the project that changed her life and voiced hope that future reunions remain possible.

Dominic Sherwood (Jace Herondale)

“To the Shadowhunter world and to the fans, I want to say that, I’ve been blown away by the amount of passion and confidence and support and love that you’ve given us over the last three years, almost four years, of us creating this show. And I want to say thank you for that. It’s not an easy thing to envelop so many people in a fandom, across all corners of the world, and you have. And you’ve created this wonderful kind of being, where people support each other and love each other and create happiness and smiles wherever they go, all based on our little show, which is amazing. Keep that up. Even though the show is coming to an end, keep spreading smiles and happiness wherever you go. It’s our little addition to making the world a better place.”

Matthew Daddario (Alec Lightwood)

“Man, I could wax poetic [about the fans]. I would say, that they should really know, and I think they do, that the fans made this a wonderful experience. Initially, when we started this, we didn’t really understand the fans and what their position was, but there were some people that we didn’t really understand their level of enthusiasm. First we were just making a show, and then it morphed into this thing where we were making a show with fans in mind. We really appreciate everything they’ve done for us. It was really wonderful because of them.” Daddario later wrote the screenplay for the 2024 reunion film Firework and starred in the 2025 Hallmark movie Holiday Touchdown: A Bills Love Story.

Harry Shum Jr. (Magnus Bane)

“To the #ShadowFam: We spent three amazing years with y’all, and I want to thank you for the encouragement, the inspiration, and also just being with us on this incredible journey that, right now, is a very emotional ride. But what you guys have done around the world, banded together and expressed how much the show means to you, it’s been really heartfelt and also allowed us to really look back and reflect on what this show means to all of us. How you guys have responded really touched us and I’m so glad that we were able to give you guys, hopefully, a conclusion to the show. But, we love you. It’s hard not getting emotional. I’m going to miss interacting with you all on Twitter and Instagram — not that we’re going to stop, but I just wanted to say I love you, and thank you so much for this wonderful time on Shadowhunters.” Shum joined the cast of the 2026 action-comedy Hellhound alongside Justin Long and Ron Perlman.

Emeraude Toubia (Isabelle Lightwood)

“Hey guys, I just want to say thank you. The Shadowhunter fans are the best fans in the world. We see everything you guys have done for the show, and I just want to say, thank you so much.”

Alberto Rosende (Simon Lewis)

“Everyone that was on set, and everyone that helped create this show always wanted the best for it. And we’re super proud of everything we’ve been able to do, and the things that we’ve done to be able to help television progress forward, in terms of diversity and quality and just deepening understanding and educating people. It’s something I’m super proud of. We’ve also created this, just as much as this fandom has created us, we’ve created this fandom of super energized, smart, educated fans that are constantly seeking to make the world better, and they should be super proud of that and the world they’ve created.”

Cast Reunions and Collaborations Since the Finale

The 2019 farewells did not mark the last time the group worked together. In 2024 Katherine McNamara posted about reuniting with Dominic Sherwood and Matthew Daddario for the film Firework, written by Daddario himself. The project gave the three actors a chance to step back into familiar dynamics while testing new creative ground. Social media updates from the set showed the same easy rapport the cast had built on the series, now channeled into a fresh story rather than the Shadow World. Fans tracking the news treated the announcement as proof that the friendships formed on set had survived the cancellation cycle that often scatters ensembles.

Ongoing Fan Conventions and 10th Anniversary Reflections

Panels featuring multiple cast members ran through 2025 and 2026, giving audiences direct access to the performers years after the finale. Katherine McNamara used a January 2026 interview to revisit the show’s significance and to float the possibility of a reunion project timed to the tenth anniversary. Convention circuits continued to book Sherwood, Daddario, and others for joint appearances, where fans brought printed scripts, custom weapons props, and stories about how the series had shaped their own communities. The steady schedule of events turned the original 2019 goodbye into an ongoing conversation rather than a single broadcast moment.

Legacy of Representation and Fandom Impact

Alberto Rosende’s original remarks about diversity and education found an echo in the years that followed. Cast members have repeatedly pointed to the fandom’s sustained work in building acceptance networks and support systems that extend well beyond the show itself. Online spaces originally created for episode discussion evolved into resources for mental health, queer visibility, and creative collaboration. The cast’s 2019 messages about unity gained new weight as the audience demonstrated that the values expressed on screen could translate into lasting real-world action. The show’s run may have ended, yet the infrastructure of connection it helped spark remains active and measurable at conventions, online, and in the projects the actors continue to choose.