It seems like only three years ago (because it was) that we were all collectively holding our breath at the prospect of the mythical season four Arrested Development Netflix reunion. And then when we actually saw the bird-heavy, chronologically-fractured season, a lot of people were quite disappointed. As result, there hasn't been as much hype for any fifth season, but that doesn't mean creator Mitch Hurwitz hasn't been working hard to make it happen. And now we have a pretty good idea what it will look like.
Hurwitz told Deadline that season five will likely be a serialized murder mystery parody, ala popular true crime stories such as Making A Murderer, The Jinx or Serial. He also wants to continue the story of politician Lindsay Bluth, who ended season four with a “Put up the wall” speech, with all the Donald Trumpian overtones that implies.
That all sounds pretty clever, but there's one pretty huge catch: they still don't have the entire cast locked down for the season. Deadline writes:
Given the timeliness, he is chomping at the bit and hoping to get the new season out before the November Presidential elections, he shared in a party conversation. Working with a team of writers, Hurwitz has the season outlined, but complex negotiations with the cast over scheduling are still ongoing, and it is unclear yet who will be available to come back as all have other commitments. Once he knows which actors are signed, Hurwitz will start writing the scripts. One other reason he is putting that off until the last second — because there has been so much art imitating life over the past months that he’s had to constantly rewrite storylines.
It is pretty impressive that Hurwitz's two big storylines—Buster Bluth on trial and Linsday as wall-obsessed Trump stand-in—were set in motion in 2013. The other big plotline that will likely be junked: Hurwitz had been planning on having George Bluth Sr (Jeffrey Tambor) become a woman, a kind of role Tambor took on for real with Transparent.
Because of the delay of Season 5 over cast schedules, Hurwitz will have trumpto discard some story ideas. For instance, he had long envisioned that George, played by Jeffrey Tambor, would become a woman, changing the dynamic of his relationship with Michael. In light of Tambor’s acclaimed performance as Maura in Transparent, that is no longer in the cards. (Hurwitz at one point even had planned to have George as a mute woman, which happened to be a disguise used by The Jinx‘s Robert Durst.) There was also Bluths’ idea to have the Mexicans pay for the wall, which has been usurped by Trump.
Once upon a time, the idea of another season of Arrested Development seemed as exciting (and as likely) as getting a new My Bloody Valentine album. Now, even with all these enticing plot developments, everything seems very clear: don't do it unless you can get the full cast together. If it takes another year, don't rush it out before the election. Nobody wants to deal with any more green screen messiness.
