The Orville Season 4 remains a possibility, or at least that's what creator and star Seth MacFarlane assured in recent comments. Now, another star attached to the show can add to that optimism, and his thoughts on the matter have me pumped about the odds of seeing this season eventually happen. I write this because, Bortus actor Peter Macon talked about the renewal odds in a recent interview, and it almost sounds like we could've had a renewal already.
Macon is currently promoting his project on the 2024 movie schedule, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, but he's, of course, being asked questions about The Orville. Comicbook.com asked the actor about the series' future, and he shared his thoughts, implying that there might've been a renewal sooner, but it was stalled:
I know he had a lot of fun and I know that he was challenged as an actor to work on The Orville, and I think that was really good for him. And I think he thinks it was really good for him and I know he's really excited about it and you know, like he always says, it's not a dead stick. So, I think that there has been like a lot of rumblings and certainly before the strike there was like, I think we were… I was waiting for a call, but I think there's some retooling and then Ted, but I definitely… I'm not inside his mind but like, just my conversations with him, it's still very much alive in his world and it's up to him. But I certainly would love to go back to it.
It sounds like there was an expectation, at least from Peter Macon, that The Orville was set to be renewed in the spring of 2023. Then the WGA strike threw a lot of shows for a loop, and now that it's over, perhaps Hollywood is playing catch up or even rethinking prior decisions. The good news is that the actor feels like he's only heard positive news from Seth MacFarlane, so it does seem the creator is as confident with his cast as he is with the public about it eventually returning.
I Have Some Ideas About What The Orville Season 4 Will Be About (Assuming It Gets Renewed)
It seemed possible that a renewal was in the cards when The Orville was first made available with a Disney+ subscription in addition to streaming Hulu, as it seemed efforts were made to get it in front of more eyes.
There have been some signs pointing toward cancellation, however, as star Adrianne Palicki talked about the show being difficult to shoot. The actress noted that Seth MacFarlane writing most of Season 3 by himself was a factor in why it took so long to produce, and one has to wonder if executives fear it'll become an issue with Season 4.
MacFarlane is a great prolific creative mind in Hollywood, and he has a lot on his plate. While his voice work for Family Guy and American Dad may be easier to schedule out and set aside time for, I'm sure there's interest from Peacock for Ted Season 2, given how well it did on the platform, and scheduling live-action work is likely a lot harder. I would think MacFarlane couldn't juggle doing something like Ted and The Orville at the same time, especially given the fact that stars like Scott Grimes and Penny Johnson Jerald are also on both shows. Or, maybe he could, but it's the studio that balks at the idea of working around a tricky production schedule.
What seems to be true is that there is a reason Hulu hasn't renewed or canceled The Orville yet and that the situation is complicated. If the streamer didn't want the show, it might have been canceled already, but these recent words from Peter Macon make it sound like it will be renewed sooner rather than later. I'd like to think the people who were able to go to great lengths to film a Dolly Parton cameo during the pandemic are capable of anything, so let's hope getting Season 4 to happen is easier than that.
As mentioned, The Orville is available with a Disney+ or Hulu subscription for anyone to stream their favorite episodes. After Peter Macon's latest comments, I'm inspired to check out Isaac's bachelor party again, if only to see his Elvis performance again.
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