Time moves slowly on Netflix’s megahit Virgin River, and it will continue to do so under new showrunner Patrick Sean Smith.
TV Line reported this week that the Greek creator and Chasing Life EP, is taking over from original showrunner Sue Tenney.
“Sue had moved on to other projects, and I’d worked with Netflix on Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings so we had a pre-existing relationship,” Smith said in a statement to TV Line.
“I was already a fan, and I was super excited when they came to me with the possibility,” the new showrunner said.
“The cast cares so much about the show and the fans, and they want to put on the best show possible.”
“I think they’ve done that for the past four seasons, so it just makes it easier for me to pick up the ball and keep running into Season 5 and beyond,” he added.
Virgin River Season 4 premiered on Netflix last week, and it was filled with twists and turns.
We got two paternity bombshells on Virgin River Season 4 Episode 12, one of which took fans by surprise.
“There is a lot going on, and it took me a while to get my head around what [the characters have] all been through, where they’re heading and where I’d like them to go,” he says.
“I wanted it to be as seamless as possible.”
Additionally, the series will not be taking to the future like many anticipated.
“Season 5 picks up right after Season 4. There’s no time jump between four and five.”
The season finale concluded with Charmaine revealing that Jack is not the father of her unborn twins as she faced complications.
Charmaine revealed her pregnancy on Virgin River Season 1, airing in 2019, and with the new showrunner saying the new season picks up right where the last one ended, well, it means poor Charmaine won’t be giving birth any time soon.
It makes you wonder whether the creatives are trying to fit seven seasons and a movie into a nine-month period.
“Poor Charmaine. She’s been pregnant for three years,” a fan shared on Twitter of the long-drawn-out plot.
By the time Virgin River Season 5 launches, Charmaine is five months pregnant.
“4 seasons. 4 whole seasons. Charmaine has been pregnant for for 4 seasons, & she’s only 5 months pregnant. I can’t,” another fan said on Twitter.
Netflix picked up Virgin River Season 5 at the same time as Season 4, and given that shows rarely go beyond a third season at the streaming service, Virgin River is defying the odds.
However, the streaming service has been known to cancel its longer-running shows, so the streamer needs to prepare an endgame.
It was revealed earlier this week that Jack was initially not the biological father of Mel’s child, but would remain as the father of Charmaine’s twins.
Thankfully, the creative forces understood that fans needed something else to keep them watching next season.
What are your thoughts on this new development?
Hit the comments.
Stream the entire series on Netflix.
Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.