It is a bittersweet week for television enthusiasts, marking the definitive end of a broadcast favorite and the ramping up of a premium cable juggernaut. We start with the mixed bag of news for the dedicated, and rightfully frustrated, fanbase of So Help Me Todd. As many feared—and as TVLine correctly predicted—the Thursday night finale aired with a massive cliffhanger. The episode was written and filmed well before CBS made the decision to cancel the series, meaning the storyline’s resolution will sadly never make it to the screen. However, series creator Scott Prendergast has stepped up to offer some closure, fielding burning questions and revealing exactly what would have happened if the network had granted Todd another season—or perhaps, another five.
The One That Got Away
The finale’s central twist revolved around the dramatic arrival of Merritt Folding, the firm’s oft-mentioned but previously unseen founding partner. His entrance couldn’t have been more calculated, occurring just as Todd realized his mother Margaret’s recent promotion was actually a trap. Folding had orchestrated the promotion to frame Margaret for his own illegal activities, effectively making him the show’s new “Big Bad.”
According to Prendergast, Folding had been pulling the strings from the shadows all along, setting Margaret up for a fall just as he had done with previous partners like Song, Barrett, and Yamaguchi. The creator noted that Folding would have been a massive presence in a potential Season 3. The creative team had even fan-casted the role, with Marcia Gay Harden suggesting her friend Joe Pantoliano for the part. They envisioned Folding as a Howard Hughes-esque eccentric, complete with beat-up shoes and uneven pant legs, and found it nearly impossible to picture anyone else in the role.
Embracing the Soap
Despite the abrupt cancellation, Prendergast does not regret the narrative gamble. When production on Season 2 began, the team felt secure, having pitched the entire arc—including the cliffhanger—with assurances that a third season was likely. One CBS executive even encouraged the dramatic ending, telling Prendergast to “embrace the soap” because the show had earned it.
Prendergast described the intended tonal shift between seasons using a classic Star Wars analogy. Season 2 was designed to be their Empire Strikes Back, leaving the characters in a perilous, dark place. Season 3 was slated to be Return of the Jedi, where the audience would discover that the heroes had secretly forged a solid plan to fight back. While that executive was reportedly heartbroken by the cancellation, the episode was long finished by the time the news broke. Prendergast is taking a page from guest star Lisa Rinna’s book regarding the unresolved ending: never regret anything, just “own it.”
A Seven-Season Vision
The showrunner also shed light on the long-term structure of the series. The plan was for every season to conclude with a man arriving to complicate the dynamic—Harry in Season 1, Folding in Season 2, and so on. This pattern was meant to continue until the final planned season, Season 7, which would have broken the mold by ending with the arrival of a “very important woman.”
Beyond the central conflict, the finale left the supporting cast at major crossroads. Allison had agreed to drop her lawsuit against Margaret to pursue her newfound interest in solving mysteries; Susan finally secured her long-awaited promotion while simultaneously weighing a tempting offer from a rival firm; and Todd seemed ready to fully commit to Judy. While these threads won’t be tied up on CBS, the creator’s candor at least provides a glimpse of the roadmap that was left in the glovebox.
New Reservations in Saint-Tropez
While the doors have closed at the Wright family law firm, HBO is preparing to welcome new guests to its most lethal luxury resort. The fourth season of The White Lotus has officially cast Sandra Bernhard, adding another heavy hitter to its ensemble. The new installment of the dark comedy, which examines the volatile dynamics between wealthy guests and beleaguered staff, will follow a fresh group of travelers over the span of a week.
Creator Mike White has selected the Château de La Messardière in Saint-Tropez as the hub for this season’s murder mystery. Bernhard joins the production with a packed recent résumé, having appeared in A24’s Oscar contender Marty Supreme, Disney+’s Percy Jackson and The Olympians, and the Apple TV+ hit Severance. She also had roles in the film Babes and reunited with Michelle Buteau for the series Survival of the Thickest. Television veterans will recall Bernhard’s long-running role as Nancy Bartlett Thomas on Roseanne, spanning from 1991 to 1997, as well as her portrayal of Nurse Judy Kubrak in the FX drama Pose. Production details for the new season remain tight, but the location and casting suggest the satire remains as sharp as ever.