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Is “You” renewed for Season 5? Yes, and Netflix has confirmed it will be the series’ last. (Insert tears here.) Fans finally have the answer many have been obsessing about, like Joe Goldberg in a bookstore. And who can blame them? I have to say the news has not made me happy, and it has nothing to do with the show ending. It is how it is happening. Video option below:
The showrunner for “You” during the first four seasons, Sera Gramble, will not be the showrunner for the final season, per Deadline. Executive producers Michael Foley and Justin W. Lo will take over the reins as co-showrunners for Season 5. Foley has been with “You” since Season 1 and Lo since Season 2.
There is no denying that the new showrunners have a history with “You.” However, no one has arguably had the handle on it Sera Gramble has had. It is deeply saddening that the person whose creativity has shown so brightly on “You” will not be there to see it through its ending. With this change, Season 5 is likely to follow in the footsteps of Season 4.
The latter was unusually uneven before Season 4 Part 2 righted the ship. “You” has the opportunity to finish how it started—a show on the verge of being iconic. Many TV series are buzzy. Few TV shows live to be spoken about years after they wrap. Sera Gramble is the one who set the stage for “You” to join the pantheon of iconic series.
Please know my comments are nothing against Sera Gramble and her decision to advance her career. She obviously deserves it, and I am thrilled she has other opportunities. I am just sad that she is heading to them now. The silver lining – if there is one – is that the ending of “You” has been in the works for a while, and Penn Badgley approves of how the thriller will conclude, telling, Entertainment Tonight:
“Now, I will say [executive producer] Greg Berlanti pitched me on an end and I thought it was brilliant. I can’t tell you what it is. He pitched it to me like a year and a half ago before I knew it was happening, Season 4. He also told me how he thought it would end in Season 5 and I thought, ‘Yeah, that’s great.’”
It is nice to know that the ending has been in sight for a time, and based on the timing of the pitch, Sera Gramble was involved. That is a comforting sign. While it is easy to get caught up in the cast that viewers see participating in their favorite TV show, the showrunners are among the other critical parts.
Fans do not even have to know of a showrunner’s departure to feel it when a show airs. “The Blacklist” lost its creator and showrunner, Jon Bokenkamp, after Season 8. One season later, the long-running thriller got renewed for a tenth and final season. Did Bokenkamp’s departure cause its end? Who knows? It is unusual to have the beautiful symmetry of writers staying all the way through.
One of the best series ever (IMHO) -- “Bates Motel” -- is one of the few to finish as strongly as it started. Since “You” started, I have hoped it could do the same. It is important to note that “Bates Motel” had its showrunners remain with it until the end, which also arrived with its fifth season. That occurrence seems to be growing rarer by the day.
It is better for showrunners to move on than force themselves to stay. The rushed and universally panned final season of “Game of Thrones” is a warning of what can happen to a great show with a bad ending. It is still legendary. Although the end has left such a bitter taste, it is tough to think of anything else when it registers in the brain bank.
Thanks to Penn Badgley’s comments, we know “You” is potentially hurdling towards something “brilliant.” This viewer, who has been around since its series premiere on Lifetime, will keep their expectations guarded. “You” Season 5 will premiere on Netflix at an undisclosed future date. Hopefully, it is not another two-parter like “Ozark.”
What do you think about “You” ending? Do you think it is too soon? Were you ready to watch Joe Goldberg for a few more seasons? What do you make of “You” losing its original showrunner before the final season? Does it shape your expectations for what is to come? Sound off in the comments section below!
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