This Ted Lasso news may sting, but it makes sense. Ted Lasso season 3 is going to be the end of the run for Ted's story. So says showrunner Bill Lawrence in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter where he revealed that this was the plan all along.
Spoiler warning: Ted Lasso season 2 details are discussed in full below. Yes, it seems that everyone's story in Ted Lasso so far has been planned since the beginning, with Lawrence and his star/head writer Jason Sudeikis having presented Apple with a plan for three seasons of the show about an American college football coach in over his head coaching a Premier League team.
So, yes, everyone (likely from Ted and Rebecca to Nate and Roy), has had their destiny written since the beginning. Lawrence said "[W]hen we started, we plotted out everybody’s beginning, middle and end of a three-season arc. This story is going to be over next year, regardless, even if the show finds another story to tell and goes on."
And, there, you have the big asterisk: "even if the show finds another story to tell and goes on." Which, sounds like a spinoff is possible. On that topic, Lawrence said "I don’t think anything is closed off, but out of just respect, we’re going to wait ... None of us are worried about Jason figuring out what he wants to do. And when he does, then we’ll start talking about all that stuff.”
Who wants a spinoff, aside from fans? THR notes that "Apple and Warners, naturally, want the show to run well beyond season three as hits are increasingly harder to come by in the peak TV era that features north of 500 scripted originals."
Analysis: This was obvious (and potential spinoffs)
From the second that Ted Lasso and the team at AFC Richmond got relegated in the season 1 finale, it was clear to see that Lawrence and Co. had a three-act/season structure for the show.
Season 1 brought Richmond down to its lowest low at the end with relegation and Jamie Tartt (Phil Dunster) leaving. Season 2 both showed us pain with Ted's struggles with his memories of his father's suicide and Jamie being bullied by his father — all for the team to become stronger and get promoted back up.
Season 3, it seems, is all about Richmond's quest to win the Premier League trophy (which is a part of the licensing deal struck between the series and the EPL). It also now has former ally turned villian Nate (Nick Mohammed) working with the enemy: West Ham owner Rupert Mannion (Anthony Head).
If Ted's previous statements about the importance of winning are to be believed, that's not the show's true ultimate goal (though we'll cheer Richmond if they win it). The ending of Ted Lasso's story is more likely to be about his path as a human, and his emotional journey as a man who left his family to cross an ocean and take a new job.
And if Ted's story is complete, what happens next — in such a spinoff series? My gut says that the easy money is fan-favorite Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein) could take the reins at Richmond, or start coaching elsewhere. A series that puts the focus on Rebecca Welton (Hannah Waddingham) could also be a winner, as while she's had something to work with week in and week out, she's definitely a character you could build a show around.
Other, less direct spinoffs could be a series about Sam Obisanya (Toheeb Jimoh) managing his new restaurant, and Keeley Jones (Juno Temple) running her own new PR firm.
Either way, Ted Lasso fans should treasure season 3 as if it were the last. It very well could be.
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