New Amsterdam Season 5 - What We Know So Far
NBC's "New Amsterdam" is a medical drama that has never been afraid to tackle ethical and even philosophical questions, thanks to its tireless and highly idealistic main character, Dr. Max Goodwin (Ryan Eggold). Apart from its captivating plotlines and focus on the humane side of healthcare, the show has plenty of all the things a successful doctor drama needs, from difficult patients to romance and personal struggles.
The ending of "New Amsterdam" Season 4 involves both literal and metaphorical hurricanes, and leaves many things in an incredibly precarious position — not least because the wedding of Max and longtime will-they-won't-they dance partner Dr. Helen Sharpe (Freema Agyeman) has apparently been called off, potentially undoing the two characters' slow-burn romance for good. For this reason and many more, it's safe to assume that fans of the show are already waiting to see how things unfold in the future. With that in mind, here's what we know about "New Amsterdam" Season 5, which premiered on September 20.
New Amsterdam Season 5 will be the show's final one
Unfortunately, "New Amsterdam" fans got heartbreaking news in March. Evidently, the show's diminishing viewer returns mean that when the fifth season ends in 2023, the show will end with it. What's more, this final season will be a fairly short one, with just 13 episodes.
The show has been able to address several important real-world issues during its run, and has received plaudits from the World Health Organization for it. However, as a relatively costly show to make, it seems that "New Amsterdam" simply isn't sustainable enough anymore. This doesn't mean that NBC doesn't appreciate the medical drama, though. On the contrary, network executives have expressed their love for "New Amsterdam."
"Over the last four seasons, [creator and executive producer David Schuldner], [director and executive producer Peter Horton] and our incredible cast have tackled important and thought-provoking stories that have touched on the human condition, but also made us laugh and imbued hope. We're so proud of this series and are indebted to everyone involved in bringing 'New Amsterdam' to life," Universal Television President Erin Underhill praised the show.
Dr. Wilder is a series regular
Though Season 5 of "New Amsterdam" will wrap up the series for good, there'll still be time for plenty of new developments ... as well as more focus on new characters. On the casting front, there'll be at least one major addition to the show's cast of regular characters. According to TV Line, Sandra Mae Frank, who plays recurring character Dr. Elizabeth Wilder in Season 4, is a series regular for Season 5.
"New Amsterdam" has received positive attention for its inclusive casting (via Respectability), which is only further underlined by this promotion — after all, both the esteemed Chief of Oncology and the actor playing her are deaf. More importantly, however, fans clearly love Dr. Wilder. "#DrWilder permanently in the house of #DamFam! Beyond thrilled to continue my journey with #NewAmsterdam as #SeasonRegular! Thank you for allllll of your support!" Frank announced the news on Twitter – and in proof of said support, the fan replies to her tweet were overwhelmingly positive.
The season will take the characters back to the beginning
It's obviously still unclear just what the plot of "New Amsterdam" Season 5 will be, though it's probably safe to say that Helen's last-minute backing out of her wedding with Max will be addressed at some length. However, the people behind the show have dropped a few hints about the nature of the medical drama's final blaze of glory (per TV Insider).
"For Season 5, you want to end where you begin," David Schuldner spoke of the season's intended circular nature. "I think for us, let's go back to that energy of Season 1 and look at where we started all the characters and make sure we end them in a place where they began."
This, Schuldner elaborated, may very well take several characters back to the various precarious positions they occupied in the show's very first season, though exactly how this will happen — and how this will relate to the newer characters, like Dr. Wilder — remains to be seen.