It all started with a hitman named Barry Berkman, who fell in love with the theatre.
“Barry” which was co-created by Bill Hader and Alec Berg and premiered in March 2018. The show follows depressed, low-level hit man Barry Berkman. When the Midwesterner reluctantly travels to Los Angeles to execute a hit on an actor who is bedding a mobster’s wife, little does Barry know that the City of Angels may be his sanctuary. He follows his target into acting class and ends up instantly drawn to the community of eager hopefuls, especially dedicated student Sally, who becomes the object of his affection. While Barry wants to start a new life as an actor, his handler, Fuches, has other ideas, and the hit man’s criminal past won’t let him walk away so easily.
The season 4 cast includes Bill Hader as Barry Berkman, Stephen Root as Monroe Fuches, Sarah Goldberg as Sally Reed, Anthony Carrigan as NoHo Hank and Henry Winkler as Gene Cousineau, Robert Wisdom as Jim Moss. Returning recurring guest cast include Michael Irby as Cristobal, Fred Melamed as Tom Posorro, Andrew Leeds as Leo, Patrick Fischler as Lon Oneil, and Jessy Hodges as Lindsay.
The Emmy® winning dark comedy series “Barry”, starring and directed by Emmy® and DGA-winner Bill Hader, returns for its fourth and final eight-episode season with two new episodes premiering Sunday, April 16 on HBO and will be available to stream on HBO Max. A new episode will debut every following Sunday, leading up to the series finale on May 28. Hader and Alec Berg are the series co-creators
During the pandemic filming was put on halt and Hader and Alec had the time to write not only the third season, but the fourth. They wrote the fourth season and went back and wrote season three, and while writing season 4 they realized that “a very clear ending presented itself.”
All 8 episodes will be directed by Bill Hader. Bill Hader who has won the Directors Guild Award for “Barry” thrice now has always wanted to direct an entire season, “But it was exhausting. It was very exhausting.” Says Hader in an interview with Variety “As Season 1 started, I was always wanting to direct, and then as I was making first couple of episodes, people like Alec Berg and Liz Sarnoff, and some really great directors we had — like Maggie Carey and Hiro Murai, especially — were coming in, and I was learning a lot from them. As the show has progressed, I’ve gotten much more confident as a director and as a writer.”
HBO has released the brand new poster and teaser for season 4.
Courtesy of HBO
Hader admits he had doubts about saying a premature goodbye that has such a passionate fanbase and online community. “We didn’t want to admit it to ourselves, you know what I mean?” Hader said, however he says “I feel like the story naturally ends after Season 4.”
“Every decision that he’s made about the story, or the jump between seasons, has made sense — so I had to go with his gut on that,” she said. “Obviously, now that we’re here, we’re feeling sentimental about it. But it really does feel like it’s the right time to finish the show.” Said Amy Gravitt the executive vice president of HBO comedy programming.
Courtesy of HBO
The official logline for season 4 reads: Cousineau is hailed as a hero as Barry’s arrest has shocking consequences. It’s all been leading up to this – the explosive and hilarious final chapter of Barry.
In the new teaser that was released we see the aftermath of the ending of the huge cliffhanger in season 3. Barry being arrested after being betrayed by his mentor Mr Cousinea. Barry is in jail following Cousineau’s betrayal.
As predicted, Barry runs into his old handler who he previously tried to kill and who tried to kill him. Fuches . NoHo Hank and Cristobal will likely still be processing what happened at the end of the season. Meanwhile Sally (Sarah Goldberg) has arrived back in Joplin, Missouri, following her public breakdown and the first murder.
“There’s questions about Sally and Cousineau and Hank. We’ve now just gotten deeper into them and what they’re experiencing, and I want to see how they handle that,” said Hader in an interview with the Hollywood Reporter
With a beaten up face, tightly holding on to the prison phone, Barry angrily says the words that’s sets the tone for the whole season ““So help me God, if I get out of here, I’m coming for you.” That alone is enough to leave fans guessing.
“What happens in Season 4 is structurally radical in some ways, but it made sense for what I think the characters needed to go through, and what I think the whole show is always kind of headed towards. You realize, well, we could pad a lot of stuff, and just make story. But if we’re going forward, it ends in Season 4.” Hader told Variety
Hader promises season 4 will be fun but also bittersweet. “It has so many twists and turns, and people’s allegiances change, and things like that, that it can be confusing.” Says Hader
“After three masterful seasons of BARRY, we are eager for viewers to see the powerful, complex and hilarious conclusion to Barry Berkman’s story. It has been a pleasure working with this immensely talented team including Bill Hader, Alec Berg, Aida Rodgers and the entire exceptional cast and crew.” Said Gravitt.
Watch the teaser for season 4 here:
“It’s been an amazing journey making this show, and it’s bittersweet that the story has come to its natural conclusion.” Says Bill Hader, star, co-creator, writer, director and executive producer. The show has been praised as a comedic masterpiece with its sharp writing and directing. It’s a smart move that Hader is making bringing the show to its natural end. However that’s not to say that the entire Barry Fandom and the Hadernation is gonna miss this show, and Barry Berkman very much. Because just like Hader and Berg intended, they created something that people loved and a story that would be remembered.
Fangirl and Writer with a huge passion for entertainment.
