Henry Winkler Says His Best Show Is Coming To An End
Henry Winkler says the fourth season of 'Barry' could be its last, as the creators of the show don't want to run it into the ground.
Monday’s 74th Emmy Awards brought a number of headlines for the biggest winners, but also news about the future of the HBO hit comedy Barry. In an interview with Variety on the Emmy red carpet, star Henry Winkler revealed that the upcoming fourth season could be the show’s last. He stated that show creators Alec Berg (Silicon Valley) and Bill Hader (who plays Barry) don’t want to “stretch” the show longer than it should, and compromise the show’s creativity for the sake of more seasons.
In the series, Henry Winkler plays Gene Cousineau, a former actor who now mentors a group of aspiring actors. That includes Barry (Hader), an assassin who wants to leave his old life behind and get into acting. Winkler has won high praise from critics and fans of the show and has been nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in each of the show’s three seasons, winning in the show’s first season in 2018.
As ScreenRant points out, the show’s unique cast and dark humor was a hit with audiences, and with Emmy voters as well, picking up an amazing 44 nominations over its three seasons, winning nine over the years. That includes two Emmys for Bill Hader for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (2018 and 2019). In addition to Hader and Henry Winkler, the series also stars Stephen Root as Monroe Fuches (who earned an Emmy nomination for the role in 2019), Sarah Goldberg as Sally Reed, and Anthony Carrigan as NoHo Hank, and was renewed for a fourth season earlier this year.
Barry gave Henry Winkler yet another opportunity in his career renaissance. He appeared in bit parts in the early 1970s until he had a breakthrough role as Arthur ‘Fonzie’ Fonzarelli in the classic sitcom Happy Days. He played the character in spinoffs Laverne & Shirley and Mork and Mindy, and the Fonz’s iconic leather jacket now hangs in the Smithsonian.
Although he seemed to be destined to always be “The Fonz,” his role in 2003’s Arrested Development revitalized his career, and Henry Winkler went on to star in TV and films including The French Dispatch, Monsters at Work, Parks and Recreation, and several Adam Sandler films. He has also taken a few turns in the director’s chair, helming the 1993 Burt Reynolds comedy Cop and 1/2 and episodes of Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Clueless.
One director’s job, however, didn’t go so well and formed the basis for a rumored feud with Hollywood legend Tom Hanks. Henry Winkler was due to direct his 1989 comedy Turner and Hooch, but was fired shortly after production began. The two share a common friend in Ron Howard, but apparently couldn’t get along with each other, with Winkler later saying he got along better with Hooch the dog than with the human actors.
Barry’s fourth season is currently in production, which will pick up on the third season’s cliffhanger ending that found Barry in trouble with the law. A release date for season four of Barry has not been announced, and the entire series is now available to stream on HBO Max.
