Ted Lasso's Showrunner Shared Possible Season 4 Plans And They Will Crush You

Now that the second season of Ted Lasso has come to an end, fans know the creators of the beloved feel-good comedy are about to make a pivotal decision. As has been widely reported, Ted Lasso was planned from the start to end with Season 3, but that was before it became a massive, Emmys-sweeping hit. In light of its huge success, the question on every fan’s mind is whether a Season 4 of Ted Lasso could happen or not. Recently, showrunner Bill Lawrence addressed the show’s potential future and revealed that if the show does continue beyond Season 3, its cast will probably look very different.

Many Ted Lasso fans know the story behind the plucky show’s inception by now. The fish-out-of-water sports comedy is based on a character Jason Sudeikis played in commercials for NBC Sports back in 2013, but when the SNL alum shopped around a series centered on this character, it was passed over by several major networks. Thankfully, Apple finally bought the show based on Sudeikis’ three-season pitch, which had a clear beginning, middle, and end for Ted Lasso, and it premiered on the tech giant’s newly launched streaming service Apple TV+ in the fall of 2020.

But that three-season arc plan doesn’t feel so cut-and-dry anymore. Ted Lasso is now one of the internet’s favorite shows and an awards season juggernaut as it heads into what was originally meant to be its final season. On Friday, Oct. 8, Lawrence spoke about potentially continuing the show beyond initial plans on The Hollywood Reporter’s TV’s Top 5 podcast, stating that the decision is in star and co-creator Sudeikis’ hands. “I’d love the show to keep going, but it’s going to only keep going as long as [Sudeikis] feels like it’s a cool thing for him, not only to do creatively and professionally, but personally,” Lawrence said. “People forget, it’s a dude with two kids and he is a great dad and to up your life over to London for half the year is tricky.”

Lawrence also dropped a hint about what a potential fourth season would look like. He said that no matter what happens, Season 3 is going to conclude the arcs of all the AFC Richmond faves, meaning if Season 4 does happen, it will likely see Ted surrounded by a whole new cast of characters. “The cool thing about this show is when we started, we plotted out everybody’s beginning, middle, and end of a three-season arc,” Lawrence said. “I would say that this story is going to be over next year, regardless — even if the show finds another story to tell and goes on.”

In particular, Lawrence’s quote seems to be referencing characters like Roy Kent, Keeley Jones, and Nate Shelley, all of whom were left with massive cliffhangers in the Season 2 finale. It sounds like Season 3 will wrap up the unexpected tale of Nate’s betrayal, as well as provide an ending to Roy and Keeley’s rollercoaster romance.

Lawrence also mentioned the possibility of spinoffs for certain characters, but emphasized that the Ted Lasso team is still in the process of figuring things out. So for now, fans will just have to keep waiting for Season 3 and be sure they savor every moment of what is sure to be a very important season... whether it’s the last one or not.