Ted Lasso Season 4 – Will It Actually Happen?

"Ted Lasso" came to an end just over a year ago, wrapping up several major storylines and seemingly concluding the series for good after its third season. But apparently, you can't keep a Diamond Dog down for good because there are serious rumblings that the show is about to return for season 4. Naturally, Apple has wanted more episodes of the show since "Ted Lasso" is the original program that put its streaming service on the map and became the most-watched streaming original of 2023 across all streaming platforms (although, unfortunately, Apple TV+ viewership numbers are still tiny compared to several of the other big streamers). Now, after more than a year of waiting, it seems like the company's wish is finally going to come true. Here's what we know so far about a possible — scratch that, probable — fourth season of the beloved comedy.

The answer comes down to one man: Jason Sudeikis. Part of the actor/writer/producer's pitch (get it? Like soccer!) for the series was that "Ted Lasso" was a three-season story, and when he and co-creators Bill Lawrence, Brendan Hunt, and Joe Kelly achieved that goal (sorry), Sudeikis seemingly felt like they had hit the end of the road, creatively. As he explained in an interview before season 3 concluded:

"This is the end of this story that we wanted to tell, that we were hoping to tell, that we loved to tell. The fact that folks will want more and are curious beyond more than what they don't even know yet — that being season 3 — it's flattering. Maybe by May 31, once all 12 episodes of the season [have been released], they're like, 'Man, you know what, we get it, we're fine. We don't need anymore, we got it.' But until that time comes, I will appreciate the curiosity beyond what we've come up with so far."

There were a flurry of questions about the show's future leading up to the season 3 finale but no concrete answers about a possible continuation, and the finale itself seemed to lightly close the door on the show. Things have been quiet on the "Ted Lasso" front ever since, but in recent days, Deadline reported that Warner Bros. TV has picked up the options for a few cast members (we'll get to them soon), heavily implying that Sudeikis has finally given his blessing to a fourth season. Apple still needs to officially give the new season a greenlight, which currently remains "contingent on budget approval and scheduling as actors whose options have lapsed may have joined other series that have them in first position," according to the report.

In March 2023, Sudeikis teased that the Lasso-Verse could continue without him, saying, "I think that we've set the table for all sorts of folks ... to get to watch the further telling of these stories [...] The fact that people want more, even if it's a different avenue, is lovely."

Phil Dunster (Jamie Tartt), told Deadline "If it's meant to be more, then I'm up for it, but if not, then it's been a hell of a journey."

Similarly, Juno Temple (Keeley Jones) said, "I know that if there were to be more seasons, or futures that we could see on a screen or not, [Keeley] would continue to make us all proud."

Before the season 3 finale, Brett Goldstein (Roy Kent) joked that Ted Lasso would die in season 3, elaborating that a potential fourth season could see the continuing adventures of "Ghost Lasso." When the finale aired, he shared an Instagram post that referred to the "end" of the show.  

Nick Mohammed (Nate Shelley) had probably the strongest reaction of the group, explaining: 

"In our heads, we're like, 'Wait. Once you've seen the series, you probably won't want anymore because there's so much closure, so much catharsis in it being three seasons.' Ted's not going to come back, because he's not going to make that mistake. He's got to stay with Melissa and Henry. That's where his place is, and that's where he's happy. There's always going to still be fixing for the characters to do. They're not all of a sudden perfect. Ted's still probably got his demons in there. But it is such a cathartic ending. I think it would be a shame to kind of be like, 'And see you next year.' It's like, well, where are we starting off on that?

You know, I'm sure if we do anything — who knows — I'm sure there will just be a sizable break between them, especially if we film another series. I don't know. But we'll see."

In a Reddit AMA last year, Brendan Hunt (who also plays Coach Beard) said about a potential return, "My pat answer, that is also 100% true: We don't know. We need a break and will take one presently. Nothing has been ruled out, everything is possible; but that includes the possibility that we're done. We won't know until we've sat with it for a while [and] decompressed." And when a fan asked when he imagined Ted and Coach Beard seeing each other again after the finale, Hunt responded, "I think they don't see each other again for years, and when they do, it'll be like they just saw each other yesterday. They won't skip a beat. I have many relationships like that and I treasure them."

But earlier this month, Lawrence explained that behind the scenes, "everybody would say the same thing, which is: whatever Jason feels like doing and whatever his decision is, we're all down with it."

Now that decision seems to have been made.

WB TV has picked up the options for UK actors Hannah Waddingham, Brett Goldstein, and Jeremy Swift. The plan is to now go through SAG-AFTRA and try to get Sudeikis, Brendan Hunt, and Juno Temple back on board (although new negotiations will need to take place, which is good news for the actors' bank accounts and bad news for the studio, which let their options expire).

Unfortunately for Phil Dunster, it appears he won't have a major role in season 4. Apparently, his option "has not been picked up, presumably due to a conflict with another series; he is on both Prime Video's 'The Devil's Hour' and Apple's 'Surface.'" Perhaps Jamie Tartt could pop up in a limited capacity, but it sounds like it would be a logistical struggle to even make that happen.

Weirdly, in June 2023, after the season 3 finale aired, Apple seemed to tease a possible spin-off starring Hunt, Goldstein, and Mohammed, although no details were ever provided and it appeared to be nothing more than a tease. (A somewhat unusual one, given it came from Apple's official account, but a tease nonetheless.)

🤐 https://t.co/gRSawHMlsQ

— Nick Mohammed (@nickmohammed) June 6, 2023

It's not known if the show's creators are interested in bringing Mohammed back at this stage. No shade to the actor, but I'd personally argue that Nate became so toxic that the character became irredeemable, and although it seems unlikely given his prominence in the first three seasons, I'd be glad to see the show move on from him completely.

One possibility would be to follow AFC Richmond as the team makes its way through the UEFA Champions League. But I'm guessing the show will instead harvest the seeds planted in the season 3 finale, in which Keeley and Rebecca talk about starting a women's football team. With Ted Lasso himself back home in Kansas with his family, it makes sense to stay overseas in the culture Ted was dropped into at the beginning of this show and follow the characters who helped form a second family for him.

And after the season 3 finale revealed that Rebecca reunites with her apparent one-night fling love interest from Amsterdam, Rebecca Waddingham told Deadline, "I think [Rebecca] gets what she deserves. Do we know if it's for life? Who knows? None of us do. But I like the fact that the man that had made her feel sunshine again has walked back in and gone, 'Hey.' [...] She ended up with somebody who, whilst he absolutely adores her, couldn't care less whether she's a big, high-powered businesswoman or not. He just digs who she is." Presumably, this relationship will need to be addressed in some way, whether to build on it or to use it as a springboard for a different path for Rebecca.

Speaking of love stories, some viewers may have felt pumped about Keeley not choosing to be with either Jamie or Roy at the end of season 3 and instead deciding to invest in herself. Without Phil Dunster around in a full-time capacity to play Jamie, it feels unlikely that the show will supercharge that trio's on-again, off-again dynamic, and that's probably for the best, given how botched that love triangle felt over the course of the scattered and ultimately disappointing third season. Here's hoping the writers can figure out a more satisfying course for Keeley, should season 4 decide to focus on her romantic exploits at all.

My biggest question right now is, how will this show re-incorporate Ted Lasso into the proceedings? Ted seems to have completed his character arc over the course of three seasons, and the show made a very big deal about his return to the United States at the end of season 3. It would be incredibly weird to instantly undo that progress and have him immediately hop on a plane and get back in the mix with his old AFC Richmond pals, so what could the show do instead? Split time between Ted's family life in Kansas and other characters' unrelated adventures in London? And if Ted doesn't play a major role in the show, would it even make sense for this series to be called "Ted Lasso" anymore?

I'm wondering if this show could get "Bosch"-ed. For those who don't recall, Amazon Prime Video had a modern private eye mystery series called "Bosch" that ran for seven seasons — until the company decided that, instead of greenlighting "Bosch" for season 8, they would create a spin-off show called "Bosch: Legacy" that featured many of the same characters (including star Titus Welliver) that would air on the Amazon-owned Freevee. Industry analysts pointed out at the time that part of the reasoning behind this decision was so the company would not have to pay as much to the actors, who often have pay increases built into their contracts with each passing season. By starting an entirely new show, that effectively wipes out those gains, and the actors would need to start negotiating again. (This is often why Netflix shows rarely make it past season 3.)

I'm not privy to any of the contracts here, and as mentioned, several of these actors should be in a good position to negotiate impressive rates now that the studios are coming to them hat in hand since their options expired, but I remain curious if we'll eventually be talking about "Ted Lasso" season 4 or season 1 of something like "AFC Richmond: A Ted Lasso-Adjacent Tale." Apple, you can have that one for free!