After just three seasons, the now acclaimed Arrested Development a fifth season with its full cast, causing many viewers to wonder why Fox ever canceled it in the first place. The show followed the hilarious antics of the formerly wealthy Bluth family, centering on Jason Bateman's character Michael Bluth. The show broke normal sitcom rules by serializing its episodes and using different narrative techniques like handheld camera footage and voice-over narration.
Arrested Development's first season was met with critical acclaim, as they won 5 of the 7 Emmy nominations they had received. After cancelation, Arrested Development is seen as a defining sitcom for the early 2000s, and it even landed a spot on Time Magazine's Top 100 sitcoms of all time. With this many accolades, the question on everyone's mind is how Fox could cancel a show that was doing so well. While Arrested Development season 4 was welcomed with open arms by most people, season 5 didn't perform as well among critics as previous installments did.
Arrested Development isn't the first series to be canceled by a major network and then picked up again afterward, due to people's interest. The most famous example is that of the series Community. TV series with high viewership don't often get the ax, but the show didn't initially have that windfall. Rather, Arrested Development was much more appreciated after its three-season run, forcing studios to reexamine the worthiness of the series. There are several reasons why Fox canceled Arrested Development — here's why, along with a glimpse of what the primary cast is up to now.
Why Was Arrested Development First Canceled?
Many things led to Arrested Development's cancelation, including resolvable blips like having to recast girlfriend Marta Estrella – but the biggest reason was the show's low ratings. Despite massive acclaim, the series went unnoticed during its original run. As viewership dropped each season, Fox slashed the number of greenlit episodes for the next season. The studio also kept bouncing the show to different time slots in desperate attempts to get people to watch. In addition to a lack of interest, Arrested Development's cancelation may have been due to bad advertising efforts from Fox, and a lawsuit from the band Arrested Development for name likeness. Finally, the studio canceled Arrested Development at the end of season 3, airing the last four episodes while the winter Olympics were shown on other channels.
Why Did Netflix Bring Arrested Development Back?
Following Arrested Development's cancelation, the show's popularity grew, matching the acclaim it saw during its original run. In hindsight, the main problem was that Arrested Development was ahead of its time. While money always being in the banana stand work with today's audience, early 2000s comedy focused more on The Office-style humor. Now, sitcoms are experimenting more with narrative and joke formats, and Arrested Development fits right into the style of modern comedy shows.
How Did Audiences Receive The New Arrested Development Seasons?
Arrested Development season 4 had a good start, but many felt that season 5 was bad because of its uneven ending. Netflix debuted all of season 4 in May of 2013, marking the revival of the previously canceled cult favorite. It did well, earning 3 Emmy nominations, and Netflix debuted a season 5 in 2018, 5 years after the original revival. Unfortunately, season 5 may have been too much for the Bluth family. For many viewers, Arrested Development season 5 was disappointing, marking the point at which the show had likely run its natural course.
Will Arrested Development Ever Come Back?
Netflix has not announced plans for a season 6, and many believe it is unlikely to come at all. Arrested Development's cancelation (despite its massive critical acclaim) suggested that something special was there – something underappreciated by viewers during its original run. Unfortunately, it seems like that spark has died out and that season 5 will be the last for the beloved sitcom. David Cross, Tobias Fünke himself, basically shot down the idea that Arrested Development season 6 would happen.
In an interview with IndieWire, the actor blamed odd production styles and practices for the ending of Arrested Development. Cross went on to say, "[...] we were doing reshoots on things because somebody thought of a joke three weeks later, so we had to reshoot something for a story thing that we had no concept of what was happening. It was a terrible way for actors to try to do what they do." The series had a long history of running gags and callbacks, though none of these practices were ascribed to previous installments of the show. At that point, the story had run its course anyway. And Arrested Development season 5's bad reception was well proof of that.
What Are The Arrested Development Cast Doing Now?
Each Arrested Development cast member has broken off into an illustrious career since the show ended. Jason Bateman (Michael Bluth) has famously starred as Martin "Marty" Byrd in the wildly popular series Ozark. In between Arrested Development's cancelation and rebirth, actor Michael Cera (George Michael Bluth) starred in a couple of cult classic movies like Superbad and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. He's currently in the show Life & Beth as John. Comedian Will Arnett (Gob Bluth) has continued to pop up on the screen, with the new Chip 'n' Dale: Rescue Rangers being the most recent notch in his belt. Before Jessica Walter's (Lucille Bluth) ing, she famously voiced the character of Mallory Archer in the adult cartoon comedy, Archer. Before sexual misconduct allegations came to light, Jeffrey Tambor (George Bluth Sr.) played Maura Pfefferman on Transparent.
Tony Hale (Buster Bluth) took the indie movie route for a while before landing a spot as Gary Walsh on Veep. Portia de Rossi (Lindsay Bluth) has retired from the acting world, with Arrested Development being her final role. Comedian David Cross has a small set of appearances on television shows like What We Do in the Shadows and the holiday movie 8-bit Christmas. Finally, Alia Shawkat (Maeby Fünke) took a similar route to Tony Hale after Arrested Development's cancellation, appearing in shows like Big Mouth and Search Party.
