“Abbot Elementary” has been renewed for its fifth season but there may be some major changes underway; the hit ABC sitcom’s creator and star Quinta Brunson is contemplating how much longer the show will go on.
“We are so fortunate and blessed to be on a network TV show for five seasons, and for people to still be fans,” she told Bustle in a new cover story. “That being said, I have cast members who would love to pursue other projects, and our show is very time-consuming.”
Brunson continued: “We shoot about seven months out of the year. That can stop people from being able to do a lot of other things.”
The pint-sized multihyphenate, who made history in 2023 as the first Black woman in more than 40 years to win a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, has become a hot Hollywood commodity amid the show’s ratings and critical acclaim. She has an exclusive, multiple-year overall deal with Warner Bros. Television Group to create new projects for the studio’s multiple platforms.
“Right now, I’m receiving scripts, and waiting for that moment that feels like, ‘Oh man, this is exactly what I’ve been looking for,’” she explained. “‘Abbott’ has been so successful, and I want to use that success to get other people’s projects off the ground.”
The “Black Lady Sketch Show” alum isn’t the only star to rise out of the Philadelphia-set mockumentary-styled workplace comedy.
While “Everybody Hates Chris” star Tyler James Williams and Broadway great Sheryl Lee Ralph were already known to national TV audiences, “Abbott Elementary” has been a springboard for comedians Janelle James and Lisa Ann Walter, and actor Chris Perfetti. Even classically-trained theater actor Williams Stanford Davis — as scene-stealer custodian Mr. Johnson.
The entire cast won the Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series prize at the 2023 SAG Awards.
The premiere date for season 5 of “Abbott Elementary” has yet to be announced, but the main cast is expected to return. The first four seasons are currently available to stream on Hulu.