Dickinson is going to end the way creator Alena Smith envisioned.
Apple said Thursday that the previously announced third season of its Peabody-winning series would officially be its last as the Hailee Steinfeld-led comedy will return with its remaining 10 episodes starting in November. Season three has also bulked up with guest stars Ziwe as Sojourner Truth, who also joined as a writer; Billy Eichner as Walt Whitman and Chloe Fineman as Sylvia Plath.
“When I set out to make Dickinson, I envisioned the show as a three-season journey that would tell the origin story of America’s greatest female poet in a whole new way, highlighting Emily’s relevance and resonance to our society today,” creator/showrunner Smith said. “In my wildest dreams, I could never have imagined how rich and satisfying the experience of making this show would become, and the incredible joy it has been to tell Emily’s story along with Hailee and our brilliant, passionate cast and crew. I can’t wait to share our epic final season with the world, and to bring our audience along with us to the conclusion of Emily’s coming-of-age saga, as she continues to fight for her own poetic truth, while reckoning with so many of the issues that face us now. Thank you to Hailee Steinfeld and our entire Dickinson team for making this such an unforgettable creative journey. I’m grateful for my partnership with Apple and can’t wait to continue telling more original stories with them in the years ahead.”
The first three episodes will launch Nov. 5, shifting to a weekly rollout afterward every Friday with the series finale set for Dec. 24. The third season will, as Smith previously noted, end during the Civil War. Smith, in an interview with THR’s TV’s Top 5 podcast ahead of season two noted that she envisioned the Civil War marking the end of the series. “We do get to that in season three,” she said in January. “I’m thinking if that was the final season, I’d be able to walk away proudly from it.”
Dickinson marks the first ongoing Apple scripted original to end on its own terms. The tech company also previously canceled scripted comedy Little Voice after one season. (Limited series Defending Jacob was never planned to continue.) As for Smith, the Newsroom and The Affair alum signed an overall deal with Apple in May 2020 and has multiple other projects in the works for the company.
In addition to Steinfeld, Toby Huss, Adrian Blake Enscoe, Anna Baryshnikov, Ella Hunt, Amanda Warren, Chinaza Uche, Jane Krakowski and Wiz Khalifa co-star. Also returning for the third and final season are guest stars Zosia Mamet as Louisa May Alcott and Will Pullen as Nobody.
Smith exec produces the series, which hails from Sugar 23, Wiip and Anonymous Content. Steinfeld, Michael Sugar, Ashley Zalta, Alex Goldstone, Robbie MacDonald Silas Howard and Diana Schmidt exec produce.
