Looks like Netflix is out of money on the banana stand. All five seasons of “Arrested Development” — including two made specifically for Netflix — will leave the streamer on March 15, sources have confirmed to IndieWire.
Created by Mitchell Hurwitz, “Arrested Development” initially ran from 2003 to 2006 on Fox before being canceled after its third season. The series was revived in 2013, with the entire cast returning, and Netflix premiered a fourth season in August. The revival was one of Netflix’s first forays into original programming and came a year after “House of Cards” premiered. In 2018 and 2019, the fifth and final season, divided into two parts, was shown on the streamer.
Seasons of the celebrated Fox sitcom are currently streaming on Hulu. It’s unclear whether the revived seasons may move to Hulu or another streamer, or become unavailable online (the fourth season received a physical DVD release from Netflix in 2013). Netflix co-created the series with Imagine Entertainment and 20th Television, the latter of which is majority owner of Disney, Hulu, and produces several series that air on the streamer.
The situation will mark the first time that Netflix has removed an original series from their streamer; Norwegian crime series “Lillyhammer,” which was licensed to the streamer in 2012 and became the first show to be marketed as a “Netflix Original,” nearly left the service last fall after an initial 10-year deal expired. an agreement was reached at the last minute to continue. Netflix’s other rival streamers, including HBO Max and Showtime, have recently moved to remove originals from their libraries as licensing deals expire to cut costs.
More to come…
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