Everything We Know About What We Do In The Shadows Season 5

Taika Waititi's supernatural New Zealand mockumentary movie "What We Do in the Shadows" is a modern classic filled with one-liners that have seeped their way into the public's collective consciousness. ("Werewolves, not Swearwolves!") That's why it's a testament to FX's spinoff mockumentary show of the same name — created by the "WWDITS" film's co-star, co-writer, and co-director Jemaine Clement — that it's managed to not only stand on its own but in some ways surpass Waititi's vampiric horror-comedy, creatively-speaking.

The FX series centers on a pack of bloodsuckers in Staten Island who are just as hilarious and endearing as those in Waititi's movie, with the benefit of having multiple seasons to flesh out their personalities and expand upon the film's themes (namely, the question of what makes any life worth living, be it immortal or not). Joining them is Harvey Guillén as Guillermo de la Cruz, a much put-upon familiar whose dynamic with his blood-thirsty "master," Nandor (Kayvan Novak), is a far more nuanced depiction of a toxic, co-dependent relationship than those found in many grounded dramas ... not to mention, certain other vampire comedies.

After two outstanding seasons and a somewhat underwhelming season 3 that, while far from a total misfire, never seemed to really find its groove, "What We Do in the Shadows" season 4 marked a welcome return to form for the show. With the series having already been renewed for two additional seasons back when season 4 was announced, here's everything we know about season 5 so far.

FX has announced that "What We Do in the Shadows" season 5 will premiere its first two episodes on July 13, 2023, at 10 p.m. ET/PT, with new episodes airing weekly after that. As has been the case for years now, the show's latest episodes will stream on Hulu the day after airing.

"What We Do in the Shadows" started airing in the summer after premiering its first two seasons in the early part of spring, going back to its season 1 premiere in March 2019. The series was initially forced back as a direct result of the pandemic but has seemingly thrived in its new spot, presumably because there tends to be less competition on the small screen that time of year (what with the summer blockbuster season taking a full swing in theaters). However, with season 6 having already been ordered, the big question with season 5 isn't viewership; it's whether it will lay the groundwork for the show to wrap up completely in 2024.

By the time "What We Do in the Shadows" season 4 was done, life had gone mostly back to normal for Staten Island's creatures of the night. After a year of operating Nadja's nightclub, wish-granting Djinns, home renovation shows, and Baby Colin's musical theater antics, the vampires were finally able to repair their rapidly-deteriorating house with the aid of a fully-grown Colin Robinson 2.0 (or whatever you'd prefer to call him). Guillermo, on the other hand, decided Nandor using the Djinn to turn his wife Marwa into a copy of Guillermo's boyfriend Freddie (keep reading, we don't have time to unpack all that right now) was the final straw, convinced his selfish "master" would never actually make good on his promise to turn Guillermo himself into a vampire.

Guillermo's solution? Recruit his old pal Derek to make him a bloodsucker instead. It's the sort of rash and possibly irresponsible decision the character would've never made in previous seasons, yet capped off a satisfying season-long arc for Guillermo — one that saw him become increasingly outspoken about Nandor and the gang's ridiculous behavior, secretly "stealing" his deserved cut of the profits from Nadja's nightclub, and finally coming out to his family. 

Still, as much as Guillermo's actions will be the catalyst for season 5, they might not play out the way he or anyone else could've predicted. "Even without knowing the details, we know it's not going to go perfectly as planned. That was the fun of it," teased executive producer Paul Simms, speaking to Entertainment Weekly in September 2022. Regardless of whether Derek made him a vampire or not, Guillermo's in for an existential crisis of his own this season.

Kayvan Novak (Nandor), Natasia Demetriou (Nadja), Harvey Guillén (Guillermo), and Matt Berry (Laszlo) are all reprising their roles for "What We Do in the Shadows" season 5, with Mark Proksch once again joining them as Colin Robinson (this time without all the body doubles he needed to play the life-draining energy vampire in season 4). Presumably, Kristen Schaal will also be showing up as The Guide in some capacity after spending all of season 4 running the nightclub with Nadja. And, of course, the door's always open for the show's previous guest stars to stop by, be it Doug Jones as the restored Baron — back for more, ahem, discreet hookups with Laszlo — or Nick Kroll as Simon the Devious (assuming he's still alive after blowing up his newly-renovated home while wearing Laszlo's cursed witch skin hat).

Might we see even more familiar faces in season 5 ... for example, perhaps a visit from renowned human bartender Jackie Daytona? All shall be revealed when "What We Do in the Shadows" returns for more monstrous shenanigans on July 13, 2023.