HBO to end The Leftovers after third season

Damon Lindelof's critically acclaimed series The Leftovers has just been renewed for its third and final season.

The series, which just had its second season finale a couple of weeks ago, is based on Tom Perrotta's book of the same name. The show follows a group of people that have been stranded on earth after an apocalyptic event mysteriously removes the majority of humanity.

HBO president Michael Lombardo said that The Leftovers has become one of the most "distinct" series available on the network and has resulted in an incredibly "passionate" fanbase.

"We admire and fully support Damon's artistic vision and respect his decision to bring the show to its conclusion next season," Lombardo said in a press release issued by HBO.

Lindelof mentioned that he was incredibly thankful to have the creative freedom HBO awarded him and his crew during the making of the sometimes violent and controversial program, but insisted it was the right time to wrap everything up.

"With our beginning and middle complete, the most exciting thing for us as storytellers would be to bring The Leftovers to a definitive end," Lindelof said. "And by 'definitive,' we mean 'wildly ambiguous but hopefully mega-emotional,' as all things related to this show are destined to be."

There's no word on who will be returning for the third and final season, but chances are the majority of actors, including series lead Justin Theroux, will be back to ring in the finale.

The Leftovers is currently available to stream right now on HBO Go.