With the curtains closed on the final season of the critically acclaimed and equally controversial show AtlantaWe say goodbye to the characters we knew and loved, and the stories (or lack of narrative altogether) they left behind. During a recent conversation with Vanity Fair, director Hiro Murray discussed the end of the show, and whether or not we’ll hear Paper Boy spit another tape. We must warn you though, This article does not contain spoilersso if you haven’t watched the season finale, spin the block in this post a little later.
The show stars the creator and executive producer Donald Glover (Earn), Brian Tyree Henry (Alfred aka Paper Boi), Zazie Beetz (Earn’s Van’s girlfriend), and Lakeith Stanfield (Darius), gave us four seasons of absurd creativity, social commentary, and knee-deep stories in southern black culture. And while the show has at times completely left the plot lines focused on these characters (as many episodes didn’t feature their main cast), Atlanta The foursome brought together again, a decision that Hiro Murray initially wasn’t part of the plan.
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It wasn’t the original finale, because in some ways it looks very natural Atlanta episode,” Murray told Vanity Fair. “And one of the writers said, ‘This has to be the last episode because it feels so totally sloppy — emotional and touching but also silly as the last episode of this four-season show.’ So there was never a plan for the episode. The latter, we kind of stumbled upon and realized we already had one.”
Well, if you expect to connect the very small arc end on Atlanta packaging, you may have found yourself a little deflated. In the episode, Darius visits a sensory deprivation resort in the city, and continues to emerge from the water gasping for breath as if he had suddenly woken up from a dream, or had narrowly escaped death – one would hardly know. And according to Murray, that’s the point.
“Our show has always been kind of obsessed with existential anxiety, you know?” The director continues. “So as absurd as the concept is, it’s also about: Does any of this mean anything in the long run? Is it all ephemeral, like a dream, or is this something we can cherish and have meaning in our lives? I think that was Always a balance of show—doing something silly and possibly semi-meaningful at the same time.”
While the viewer might be happy to see all four characters together in the final scene, there isn’t necessarily an honest ending in the way that, say, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was left wrapped with Will in Los Angeles while the rest of the family gears up. out of the state. Instead, the staff sit around a coffee table in the living room eating Popeyes after Earn, Van, and Paper Boi leave a dissatisfied Black-owned sushi spot. The three eventually get up from the table to smoke while Darius is left alone to watch Judge Judy.
“…we won’t necessarily give you an emotionally satisfying ending,” Murray says. “But getting into season four, Donald and I came to a place where we kind of grew up. We just realized that we care about these people and we want to see them end up in a place that feels good.”
When asked about the possibility of a final ultimate Season Murray answered, or once:
“We often joke that we will be back when we are all seventy. We will be called up Atlanta: Lottie’s Revenge. If there’s a good story to tell, I think we’re all open to the idea of reopening the door. But it is right to have this [finale] as a numbering point.
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