Netflix's 'Atypical' Renewed for Fourth and Final Season
On Monday, Netflix announced the fourth and final season of “Atypical” will air in 2021.
“Atypical” follows 19-year-old Sam Gardner (Keir Gilchrist), an autistic teenager, as he navigates school, relationships and college. The series, billed as a comedy, was created by Robia Rashid and first debuted in 2017.
“I’m thrilled we’ll be doing a season four of ‘Atypical.’ And while I’m so sad to be nearing the end of this series, I am extremely grateful to have been able to tell this story,” Rashid said in a statement. She added:
Our fans have been such beautiful, vibrant supporters of this show. Thank you for being so open to Sam’s voice and stories, and those of the entire Gardner family. It’s my hope that the legacy of ‘Atypical’ is that more unheard voices continue to be heard and that even after this series ends, we keep telling funny, emotional stories from underrepresented points of view.
Join Sam on one last expedition. Atypical returns for a fourth and final season. ???? pic.twitter.com/dckMBL6Lqd
— Atypical (@Atypical) February 24, 2020
The series has received mixed reviews from the autism community, especially because Sam’s character is portrayed by a typical actor who is not autistic. In response, Rashid worked to increase the number of actually autistic actors involved in the show after the first season. This included casting a peer group for Sam in season two that was comprised of actors on the spectrum.
Autistic actress Tal Anderson was brought on for the show’s third season to play Sid, a seasoned college student at Denton University who serves as a guide for Sam. Anderson told The Mighty she appreciates the show’s representation of autism and had a great experience on set. She also hopes her inclusion in the show will lead to more authentic representation in media across the board.
“Authentic representation in general, is really important, but for people with disabilities specifically, it is really critical because representation in the media can lead to more inclusion in real life,” Anderson told The Mighty, adding:
Actors on the spectrum deserve to be considered for all types of roles that they identify with, not just characters who are neurodiverse. I would like to see people with all kinds of disabilities playing all kinds of characters on screen. I mean, why does an actor who happens to be in a wheelchair have to only play a role of a person in a wheelchair? Why can’t they just play the role of a lawyer, or a prisoner, or a teacher? I would also like to continue to see other TV shows include characters on the spectrum at all levels of functioning, because autism does not just look one way, and also, not every person on the spectrum is the same.
“Atypical” will debut its 10-episode fourth and final season in 2021.
Header image via Twitter
Renée Fabian was the features editor at The Mighty. She has also written for The Washington Post, VICE, Healthline, Talkspace, The Fix, The Establishment, The Culture Trip, and GRAMMY.com, among others. Renée was named a 2019 AHCJ Comparative Effectiveness Research fellow, a 2020 USC Center for Health Journalism California fellow, and holds a master's degree in journalism from the University of Southern California and a master's degree in psychology from Antioch University Los Angeles. You can follow her on Twitter @ryfabian.
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