Here’s Why Netflix Is Removing All 5 Seasons Of ‘Arrested Development’

Netflix is removing Arrested Development from its streaming catalog in one month according to a notice the streaming giant has placed on the show’s landing page. All five seasons—the first three that originally aired on Fox and the final two that Netflix produced—will be taken off the streaming service. This will be the first time that a Netflix Original has been removed from Netflix, though it’s not entirely without precedent.

According to Variety:

While the “Arrested Development” landing page on Netflix is already alerting viewers that March 14 is the last day to watch the series, that still seems to be subject to change. Norwegian crime drama “Lilyhammer,” which was billed as the first-ever Netflix original, was announced to be leaving the service last year, but a licensing renewal at the last hour allowed the series to continue streaming. But if the removal of “Arrested Development does go through,” it will be the first time Netflix has scrubbed its own original content — something that has become a trend as of late on platforms like HBO Max and Showtime.

Arrested Development, which starred Jason Bateman, Jeffrey Tambor, Michael Cera, Jessica Walter, Will Arnett, Tony Hale, Portia de Rossi and Alia Shawkat, was cancelled back in 2006 (nearly two decades ago!) and revived in 2012 by Netflix for two final seasons before being cancelled once again. Many consider these two final seasons to be the worst of the bunch, but at least the show was able to tie up some loose ends, which is more than we can say for many actual Netflix Originals. Season 4 aired in 2013 and Season 5 dropped in two installments in 2018 and 2019, making this one of the most bizarrely stretched out shows ever made.

The show, like many others, took a PR hit when one of its stars, Jeffrey Tambor, was accused of harassment on the show Transparent. Tambor was also accused of bad behavior by co-star Jessica Walter on Arrested Development.

Netflix’s decision to pull the show from its streaming service boils down to licensing. The deal to bring Arrested Development’s first three seasons over from 20th Century expires this year, ten years after Season 4 dropped on Netflix on May 26th, 2013.

It’s unclear what happens to the show when (and if) it is removed from Netflix on March 14th. Licensing issues between 20th Century (now owned by Disney) and Netflix could put its future in an awkward position. The first three seasons are currently also streaming on Hulu, another Disney-owned streaming service. What will happen to the fourth and fifth season is anyone’s guess.

Truly, this is a strange time for the streaming industry.

P.S. We still need to save Raised By Wolves!

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