Spoilers ahead.
After a two-and-a-half year hiatus, the beloved dark comedy Dead to Me is most certainly alive again—at least, temporarily. Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini give their final performance in Dead to Me season 3, which is out now on Netflix.
The season’s trailer picked up right where the series left off: with Jen (Applegate) and Judy (Cardellini) in another unbelievable predicament. Just when we thought these two had gone through enough last season, a drunk driver T-boned their car, and the teaser reveals the dysfunctional duo are now recovering in the hospital.
You’ll recall this all began when the friends met at a grief counseling meeting, sparking a series of events that led to Jen and Judy braving the aforementioned hit-and-run car accident involving Ben Wood (James Marsden). But there’s a lot of emotional baggage tied up in this particular crash, and it seems only a matter of time before some murderous secrets come to light. As the series takes its final bow, here’s what we know about the future of Dead to Me—and why this is the last go-round for the Emmy-nominated series.
Will there be a season 4 of Dead to Me?
Unfortunately, season 3 will be the show’s last hurrah. Netflix broke the news on Twitter way back in 2020, at the same time the streamer announced the show’s season 3 renewal. The news wasn’t exactly surprising: Many fans were shocked to hear that even a third season was on the way, due to the impact of COVID delays and Applegate’s recent diagnosis with multiple sclerosis. Although we’ll be sad to see the brilliant dramedy go, we can expect to finally get some answers by the time the curtains close.
Why will the show end with season 3?
If this is one of Netflix’s most-watched series, then why no more? Creator Liz Feldman says she always intended the series to run short and sweet. “I always knew from the inception of the show that I didn’t want it to be a long long-running show,” she told Deadline in 2020. “Then there was a certain point when we were in production on season 2 when the end of the show came to me, pretty profoundly, so I realized, ‘I know the story that I have to tell,’ and season 3 feels like the right time to do that. It’s just something that came to me organically, and I tend to try to follow the gut feelings I have.”
Is there any future for Dead to Me? A spin-off, maybe?
Netflix scripted originals are typically short-lived; few shows successfully make it past four seasons, and so far there aren’t any known whispers of a spin-off. Applegate took to social media to share some final thoughts back in 2020, writing, “I will miss these ladies. But we felt this was the best way to tie up the story of these women. Thank you to all the fans.”
But if you’re still craving more of the Liz Feldman Cinematic Universe, you’re in luck! Back in 2020, the showrunner struck an overall deal with Netflix, meaning any new series or projects she creates will land at the streamer. In May 2022, her second dark comedy No Good Deed got the green light, per The Hollywood Reporter. The series follows three families competing to buy the same 1920s-style villa, which happens to be haunted. After the recent success of The Watcher, another series about a family moving into a thoroughly creepy home, we expect Feldman’s next chapter to thrill.
Amanda Le is a contributing writer at Hearst Magazines, where she covers fashion, beauty, lifestyle, and entertainment. Born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama, she spent her time immersed in magazines and dreaming of a life in the concrete jungle. Following her graduation from The University of Alabama, Amanda started her career working in the entertainment media space. In her free time, you can find her traveling to new cities, thrifting, crushing a boxing class, or eating her way through NYC.