Under The Dome Might Not Take Place Under A Dome Anymore

Spoilers for those who aren’t caught up on Under the Dome Season 3.

When it comes to TV shows that are both ridiculous and ridiculously confusing, it’s hard to do much better (or worse, depending on your outlook) than CBS’ Under the Dome. After two-and-a-half years of “will they/won’t they” in terms of characters making it out from under the titular prison, it looks as if no one will be down there by the end of Season 3, as the show will apparently be bringing the entire shebang down. So what does that mean for the future? It’s rather unclear at this point, kind of like when the Dome was blacked out.

The news of the Dome’s downfall was confirmed at this year’s TCA press event by CBS entertainment chairman Nina Tassler, who said it’s “coming down at the end of this season.” Which could possibly mean it may going up and away, or it could explode, or it might just disappear into thin air; with this show, nothing ever seems to be so simple. And to be expected, the Dome’s parting with reality won’t be the end of everything.

According to EW, there are several “major events” that will take place after the Dome comes down, and that the creative team is setting up the Season 3 finale to serve as both a season-ender, as well as a series finale, should the network choose not to renew it for Season 4. But there will be at least one story path that won’t be cemented completely, and it could give the writers a new direction for next summer. Here’s how Tassler put it.

[The dome coming down] opens up a host of other storytelling opportunities. You just don’t know what will happen when the dome comes down.

I bet most of these people will want nothing to do with each other for the rest of their lives if the Dome disappears. We saw how Barbie immediately skipped town whenever we all thought the Dome was gone at the beginning of Season 3, but that was just a trick involving cocoons. I can’t imagine they’d put audiences through two fakeouts in the same season.

It’s hard to say whether or not CBS will renew Under the Dome for Season 4. It was originally supposed to just be a limited series adaptation of Stephen King’s novel of the same name, and has gone far beyond that source material in almost every way. And even if they’ve got story ideas for years, there’s no denying the viewing audience has taken a major tumble, with this year’s ratings steadily dropping and nowhere near the impressive Season 1 numbers.

All in all, we just want to know what’s up with the Kinship and Aktaion and…well, everything else. Are you guys ready to watch the Dome fall?

Nick Venable
Assistant Managing Editor

Nick is a Cajun Country native and an Assistant Managing Editor with a focus on TV and features. His humble origin story with CinemaBlend began all the way back in the pre-streaming era, circa 2009, as a freelancing DVD reviewer and TV recapper.  Nick leapfrogged over to the small screen to cover more and more television news and interviews, eventually taking over the section for the current era and covering topics like Yellowstone, The Walking Dead and horror. Born in Louisiana and currently living in Texas — Who Dat Nation over America’s Team all day, all night — Nick spent several years in the hospitality industry, and also worked as a 911 operator. If you ever happened to hear his music or read his comics/short stories, you have his sympathy.