Wrap It Up

It’s often said the mark of a good writer is knowing when to put the pen down. The mark of a good showrunner is knowing an end to your series would be a mercy.

Lengthy stretches of time between releases of new seasons have become a norm in modern television. Streaming has arisen as the main mode of television consumption, and in doing so has reshaped the realities of television production.

In the golden age of cable and broadcast TV, viewers could expect new seasons of their favorite shows to be churned out once or even twice per year. Nowadays pop culture’s most beloved series may take upwards of four years before a new season drops — perhaps to even begin filming. 

At some point, somebody has to make the decision to wrap it up.

Showrunners are taking advantage of the leeway streaming has allotted them. Where they were once expected to procure a singular 30-40 minute episode to air on a weekly basis, the all-at-once release strategy of shows on streaming platforms allows for more creative freedom and extravagance — and longer waits for viewers.

This approach certainly fosters previously unseen levels of entertainment, but it’s bled through to the broader realm of production where it simply isn’t necessary. There’s an increasing pattern where shows that could realistically be filmed within a few months go on extended hiatuses between season wraps, such as the show “Fargo” which went three years between its fourth and fifth seasons.

Long wait times between seasons also create a lack of urgency to restart production, meaning actors and even directors — have more time to pursue other projects, threatening to further delay new seasons of earlier projects.

HBO Max’s “Euphoria” is a prime example. Two years ago, the show’s success was impossible to ignore. With a new episode dropping every week — a refreshing change from the binge-watch culture of modern streaming — buzz surrounding Euphoria stretched on for months.

Myself and other viewers anticipated the arrival of season three would take some time, but after the untimely death of Angus Cloud and the blockbuster success of the show’s other stars, conversation arose about whether the show would even move forward.

The show’s other top stars have pursued projects outside “Euphoria” which have given them even more notoriety. Among them are Jacob Elordi, who starred in Emerald Fennell’s “Saltburn” and Sofia Coppola’s “Priscilla,” Zendaya, star of “Dune: Part Two” and “Challengers,” Hunter Schafer, who played “Tigress” in “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” and Sydney Sweeney, whose debut as a producer for the 2024 film “Immaculate” made headlines.

With these actors’ newfound levels of success on other projects, it seems strange these budding movie stars would return to a show proven to be below their maturity level as actors after so much time away.

Modern TV shows’ commitment to drawn out productions also pose questions about series continuity. Many of these shows employ young actors tasked with portraying even younger characters.

In Netflix’s “Stranger Things,” for example, the main characters were 15-years-old in season four. Come season five — which likely won’t air until 2026— I won’t be able to focus on anything other than the grown men still playing Dungeons-and-Dragons obsessed high school kids.

Although these long waits are usually frustrating and unnecessary, there are instances where they are appropriate. The SAG-AFTRA strike brought Hollywood to a halt for the better part of 2023. This coupled with pandemic-related scheduling conflicts caused hundreds of film and television productions to navigate having pins put in their already tight schedules.

Even if there were no external hurdles to jump over, some may argue long waits are forgivable when it leads to higher production quality and longer, feature-film length episodes.

Season four of “Stranger Things” had one of the longest run times for a singular season in television history, with seven episodes spanning over 13 hours. The season broke the record for biggest ever premiere weekend of an English-speaking series on Netflix, according to Variety.

Nevertheless, allowing years-long periods of time between seasons gives room for overall production to be put in jeopardy. Whether showrunners have decided to take a more cinematographic approach or if they’ve simply succumbed to the sunk cost fallacy, it’s important to recognize when momentum has expired and it’s time to wrap it up.