My Name Is Earl aired for four seasons on NBC before it was cancelled, and the creator has revealed how he would have ended the series if it had continued on to a natural end. The series ended with a bit of a cliffhanger, but Greg Garcia did have a plan in mind for how to wrap things up.
In a Reddit AMA, he revealed how he would have ended the comedy series if he had been able to close it out. He said:
“I had always had an ending to Earl and I’m sorry I didn’t get the chance to see it happen. You’ve got a show about a guy with a list so not seeing him finish it is a bummer. But the truth is, he wasn’t ever going to finish the list. The basic idea of the ending was that while he was stuck on a really hard list item he was going to start to get frustrated that he was never going to finish it. Then he runs into someone who had a list of their own and Earl was on it. They needed to make up for something bad they had done to Earl. He asks them where they got the idea of making a list and they tell him that someone came to them with a list and that person got the idea from someone else. Earl eventually realizes that his list started a chain reaction of people with list and that he’s finally put more good into the world than bad. So at that point he was going to tear up his list and go live his life. Walk into the sunset a free man. With good karma.”
Garcia also revealed that he had asked the network if it was okay for him to end the season on a cliffhanger. The network told him to go ahead, and it was only after that NBC decided to cancel the series. Garcia might have written a different season four finale if he had known the network was going to cancel the series.
In addition, Garcia also planned to reveal who Earl Jr’s father was before the show ended. The writers were thinking that it would be someone famous who’d been in town for just one night. The writers didn’t get to decide who that would be, but the baby daddy was intended to be revealed before the series ended.
Were you a fan of My Name is Earl? Did Garcia’s reveal give you closure for this series? Tell us what you think.
This show needs to be finished.. I know I’m only one voice but this show has helped me alot in many ways and I’m certain I’m not the only one on this matter … I believe a petition would be signed by most of America let alone other countries… just a thought… please bring back earl and finish this show!
I really wish the show would have finished the way Greg Garcia intended. It’s a huge bummer how it was canceled and I’d love to see a come back or a spin off (with the same people as the same main characters of course).
Miss it. Loved it. A good show we looked forward to each week.
I loved the show when it aired on tele in Cape Town, South Africa and have recently re-watched it. I might re-watch it again, its still a really good show and wish that it had the opportunity to run its course as the creators planned.
Leave it to a big corporation to take the best show on TV and cancel it. It was a great example, it was a bad guy that was trying to turn his life around by doing good things. Leave it to Hollywood to cancel a show about somebody trying to do good. The show was funny, engaging, and it had a real world feel. To bring it back would be a plus, light shining through a window in a dark room of hollywood.
100% agree!
I am going to binge watch My Name isEarl right now Jamie Presley makes me laugh so hard!
My husband &,I have started watching ” My Name Is Earl” . I started watching it years ago & have rediscovered what a happy, unethical, but wonderful show it is! It lets you laugh & feel like you might know these people. Especially before everything became so “Woke” & hateful! I wish it was still on! The actors were wonderful!
I’m so bloody upset I loved my name is earl, I had the box set, joy was awesome and really mixed well with crabman…Randy just thought his brother was the man, I’d give anything to have that show back on and have the writter garcier keep going because my name is earl is one massive popular, funny show that’s been dumped!!! And that pisses me off
Same , all the actors were so funny !! What was the network thinking? Another funny show that was robbed is Mad T.V.
This sucks you need to bring back this show I need to have a proper ending.
I’m so sad it’s over what do I do with myself now lol ugh and left with a cliffhanger sad days. Really wished there was a 5th. Enjoyed watching though
Just finished watching the 4 series. Please make the 5th. One of the best shows on tv.
I was very disappointed, there was no 5th season
I’m really disappointed. I would have liked to know who the real fathers were, especially Crabmans’ son. How inconsiderate of NBC.
Dodge was Earl’s actual son, it was only who Earl Jr.’s dad was that was left up in the air.
I’m sooooooooooooooooooo sad the show ended….. RIP
I like the serie a lot , just watched the whole serie for the third time.
i realy like this kind of humor.
I am realy sad that it has ended.