It looks like there’s still money left in the banana stand. Jason Bateman took to twitter this evening to announce the “probable” return of the Bluth family for “Arrested Development” season 5.
“Looks very probable I’m going to put some miles on the Stair Car this summer,” Bateman wrote in reference to the Bluth family vehicle featured in all of the past seasons. “Just officially signed on to more ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT today.”
READ MORE: ‘Arrested Development’ Plotting Another High Concept Storyline For Season 5
Presumably the “probable” indicates that the summer start date could be up in the air, but if Bateman, the star of the show, is back in the fold, one should assume the rest of the cast — who all love the show dearly — will return too. Start dates are obviously fluid. Last time creator Mitch Hurwitz spoke he had speculated a January 2017 start and obviously that date has passed.
A few months back, producer Brian Glazer suggested the same, that “Arrested Development” would be back on track at Netflix soon.
“I think we’re really close to pulling it off finally. All of the actors have agreed to do it and I think they’ve agreed to their compensation structure. That’s been the hardest – it’s all hard … But it should be happening soon,” he told the Wrap at the TCA press tour.
“Netflix is determined to do more episodes, so we’re going to do more episodes,” he said at the time.
A critical darling, “Arrested Development” ran on Fox for three seasons during 2003-2006, but poor ratings forced the network to cancel the series during its third season (which was cut down and truncated in length). But the show’s cult status kept growing, keeping the conversation around the series ongoing. For what seemed like years, Hurwitz and the cast discussed the show, hoping to bring it back, to no avail and seemingly with no interest from Fox.
Seeing the opportunity and building their original content model, streaming outlet Netflix stepped in to save the series in 2013 and aired a fourth season. However, that complex season — that rarely showcased that the entire Bluth family together in one scene — was perhaps a little too ambitious. Bouncing around back and forth in time, audiences found the season hard to follow and it was met with mixed reviews at best.
But fans are hoping for a former return to glory and the show is so beloved, you can pretty much bet each and every one of those hardcore viewers will give the fifth season a fair shot.
Look very probable I'm going to put some miles on the Stair Car this summer. Just officially signed on to more ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT today.
— Jason Bateman (@batemanjason) May 12, 2017
