There is little doubt that fans are still disappointed that Westworld Season 5 isn't happening. However, it looks like HBO was ready to produce the fifth and final season of the series. Unfortunately, the showrunners decided to turn down the option because it would mean the last episodes will go through a major budget cut due to Warner Bros. Discovery's mandated changes.
It's no secret that showrunners Lisa Joy and Jonathan Nolan were eager to work on Westworld Season 5 since it would be the show's final season and they would be able to conclude the story the way they wanted it to. However, HBO announced that the fourth season would be the last one and that the series will not be renewed.
So what exactly happened here? According to The Hollywood Reporter, HBO was already considering the renewal. However, the network wanted to make the move from its premium cable channel to a Free Ad-Supported Television (FAST) streaming service. Unfortunately, these services are not known to provide big budgets and Westworld would have to take a major budget cut on its last episodes.
Not surprisingly, Joy and Nolan were not satisfied with the deal and decided to decline the renewal. Sadly, this means that we'll never get to see how Westworld was supposed to end.
Lisa Joy had previously shared their plans for Westworld Season 5, revealing that it would finally explore what would happen when Dolores takes control.
"Now we’re moving toward, gods willing, a season in which Dolores has control and the cycle will repeat one last time. How will that be different? What new things can be learned? And, is it possible to even break out of that cycle?" Joy had said.
Westworld first premiered in 2016 and explored a fictional, technologically advanced Wild-West-themed amusement park populated by android "hosts". But when two hosts become sentient, they begin to fight back against the company that created and abused them.
Related: Westworld Season 5: Here’s Probably Why HBO Canceled the Show
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