'Lucifer' 's Rachael Harris Found It 'Extraordinarily Moving' That Fans Saved the Show Twice

Rachael Harris has some of the best fans in the business.

The Lucifer actress, 53, praises the show's loyal followers for helping bring it back from cancellation twice, as she opens up to PEOPLE about the Netflix series' bittersweet farewell with its sixth and final season premiering Friday.

"It was extraordinarily moving that the fans really connected with the show," Harris says.

Based on the DC comic book from Neil Gaiman, she stars as Dr. Linda Martin, a Los Angeles therapist tasked with helping Lucifer Morningstar (Tom Ellis) take on his inner demons. As one of the few mortals who knows the Devil's true identity, she joins him for a series of God-level adventures over the show's six-season run.

"It's funny because I never thought I would do conventions, where you go meet the fans. But I did one in Germany and that's the only physical one that I've been to," Harris recalls. "And just meeting those people in another country and hearing their stories about how the show connected with them, I understand why the fans feel so passionately about it because ... a lot of times, a lot of our fans feel like outsiders in our world. So they connect with the celestials, feeling out of sorts on earth."

Lucifer premiered in 2016 on Fox, where it was canceled after three seasons. Netflix subsequently swooped in to rescue it for a fourth season and then renewed it for a fifth and final round. But the fans managed to give the show life once again, after a Change.org petition amassed nearly 120,000 signatures, pushing Netflix to give them a proper swan song.

"The first time when we were canceled at Fox and then Netflix picked us up, that blew us away. But then the fifth and sixth season was completely unexpected and so affirming," Harris raves. "I've been around for a long time and shows don't get saved like that. ... It's not that easy. So it's been really a godsend, no pun intended, but it's felt wonderful."

The show has even managed to outlive the outrage it sparked with the first season, when One Million Moms attempted to have it canceled before it even premiered. Harris has seen the fanbase grow to include Christian viewers as well.

RELATED VIDEO: Lucifer's Aimee Garcia Talks About The Series Ending and Her Upcoming 'Quirky, Romantic Comedy'

She recalls a recent encounter with a group of southern fans. "And they said, 'At first we were scared of your show. We didn't want to watch a show with the title Lucifer.' And they're like, 'Now we get it, and we're like, it's not about that at all. It's about love and redemption and being kind, not letting the Devil get the best of you and that the Devil doesn't control you.' And I said, 'Exactly, that's what I love about the show.'"

"I see the show as a show about redemption," Harris explains. "And take the spirituality out of it, it's about being responsible for your own choices and honoring who you really are and what you love and who you really are. It's about you accepting that and that gift, and that's the purpose."

Harris says she was "moved to tears" while watching the final season, which is sure to give the show's loyal fans some closure.

Meanwhile, she's already missing her costars.

"It's funny, since we shut down, I didn't realize how much I relied on knowing that I was going to see them. And I miss them terribly," Harris says. "But they really did become my second family."

The sixth and final season of Lucifer premieres Friday on Netflix.