Question, though. What are the chances of success if a significant chunk of the current follower have zero interest in the change of direction?
At least, not until the "new" series catches up to the current cliffhanger.
This just feels like a massive misstep. I've seen enough of them over the years to recognise the signs. Pivoting a product away from what people want, absolutely convinced they'll win people over. I've seen projects and entire platforms/companies fail over this kind of thing.
You cannot force people to like a product they don't want to. If you're really lucky, you can hit on the right combination of factors that really does pull people in. More often than not, though, you have to make what people are asking for or you don't have a sustainable audience.