Co-Creator Shares Insights into For All Mankind's Future Beyond Season 4

Summary

The creators of For All Mankind have planned the show for six or seven seasons and are currently past the halfway point, sticking to their ambitious roadmap.

The show's writers have the freedom to deviate from the planned storyline if necessary, while keeping the main objectives in mind.

Even though co-creator Ben Nedivi is unable to envision discussions about Season 6 at this point, as Season 4 is about to debut, their long-term vision for the show remains strong.

Collider recently interviewed Ben Nedivi and Matt Wolpert, the creators of the Apple TV+ science fiction show For All Mankind. The show envisions a different history in which Russia reached the Moon before America, leading to a prolonged Space Race. Each season of the show spans a significant time jump, showcasing the rapid growth of space exploration. The ensemble cast, which includes Joel Kinnaman, Michael Dorman, Sarah Jones, Shantel VanSanten, Jodi Balfour, Cynthy Wu, Coral Peña, and Edi Gathegi, rotates due to the extensive timeline. In the interview, Nedivi expressed his amazement that they were now "past the halfway point" in the show's planned six to seven seasons. While open to adjustments during the writing process, they have remained committed to their overarching vision.

Can For All Mankind Last 6 to 7 Seasons?

We had an incredibly ambitious plan in mind. From the beginning, we meticulously mapped out our vision for six or seven seasons. Remarkably, we have remained true to our original objectives thus far. Of course, each season brings its own set of changes, allowing our writers and the writers’ room to explore new horizons or make adjustments. Currently, we find ourselves in a captivating position – beyond the halfway mark. Initially, like with most TV shows, we dreamt of a grand storyline, envisioning the future for our characters. Despite our audaciousness, back then it didn't seem like we were certain about the specifics of Season 6. Yet, we are now on the cusp of debuting Season 4.

According to Nevidi, the show will need to air for only two or three more seasons to cover the entire planned For All Mankind timeline. While a seven-season run is not overly demanding for a popular series, the significant budget required to produce a visually stunning show like this could become problematic if viewership starts to decline. It remains to be seen whether Apple TV+ will continue to support the show for that duration, especially since the renewal of For All Mankind season 5 has not yet been confirmed.

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To date, Apple TV+ has yet to have an original show last for seven seasons. Considering the platform's relatively short existence since 2019, this outcome is not surprising. For All Mankind, however, has managed to equal the record of Apple TV+'s longest-running show, M. Night Shyamalan's Servant, at four seasons. The future of For All Mankind, along with several other shows, remains uncertain due to the ongoing Screen Actors Guild strike. Actors are refusing to perform in productions affected by the strike as they advocate for fair compensation.

Given that For All Mankind has already successfully navigated global production shutdowns during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is highly probable that the show can also endure the strike. Additionally, once the strike concludes, any worries regarding actors' contracts or their willingness to return would not pose a problem for the show. This is because the time jumps incorporated in For All Mankind's storyline enable the possibility of featuring new actors in future seasons, even if some of the long-standing stars are unable to reprise their roles. All of these factors contribute to a promising outlook for the show's future.