Why the 'Sex Education' Cast Isn't Returning for Season 5
Pack your school bags one last time, because Sex Education is coming to an end. Otis, Maeve, and Eric have just one last semester left at Moordale High, and it's a doozy. According to Netflix, the students have some "monumental changes" ahead of them, including Otis embracing his role as a teenage sex therapist. But fans may still be shocked as to why the hit UK sex romp is coming to an end after Season Four. Well, just like being a teenager, a lot can change in just four years.
Since the first season of Sex Education, many of the show's leads have gone on to star in some major projects. Ncuti Gatwa, who plays Eric, was recently announced as the new Doctor Who. Emma Mackey ("Maeve") starred in Barbie alongside Sex Education costars Connor Swindells ("Adam") and Gatwa (again!), while Simone Ashley ("Olivia") joined the cast of Bridgerton. In fact, some cast members, including Ashley, Tanya Reynolds ("Lily"), and Patricia Allison ("Ola") won't even return for Season Four.
According to the cast, it's a bit tricky to keep playing teenagers on television when you want to move on to bigger roles. "It’s different when you're playing a character that is sort of stuck in time," Mackey, 27, told Total Film. "You know, we're playing 17-year-olds, and we're all almost 30, it is a bit weird." Gatwa, in an interview with Rolling Stone UK, also stated that he felt the cast had "outgrown it and we’ve given everything we can to it."
While a spinoff or a return to a limited Season Five is always still possible, creator and writer Laurie Nunn revealed in an open letter that the end of Season Four feels like the right time to end the series. "This was not an easy decision to make," she wrote, "but as the themes and stories of the new season crystallized, it became clear that this was the right time to graduate." So, grab some tissues and celebrate the final days with Otis and the gang. Everybody has to grow up eventually.
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