I’d Probably Just Do a Different Show

Picture Credit: Netflix

If you’ve been holding out hope for another culinary and romantic adventure with Dev Shah, it might be time to officially hang up your pasta maker. Aziz Ansari has confirmed what many fans have suspected for a while: there are currently no plans for a fourth season of the hit Netflix series Master of None.

In a recent interview on the Happy Sad Confused podcast with Josh Horowitz (and resurfaced on the show’s subreddit in recent days), the comedian-turned-director opened up about his creative future, why he’s choosing to leave his Emmy-winning series in the past, and how the show evolved so drastically during its run. Here is everything we know about why the door is closing on Master of None, a look back at its surprising history, and what Ansari is cooking up next.

In the wide-ranging interview, Ansari was directly asked if the door was still open to revisit the Master of None universe. Ansari didn’t mince words. “No, I probably just do a different show or something like that at this point,” he stated.

Ansari served up a few reasons why, with the passage of time and personal growth being key points. Master of None premiered way back in 2015, and the cultural landscape—as well as Ansari’s own life—has shifted drastically since then. Ansari looks back on the show fondly but views it as a completed chapter. “I love that show, and I think it’s a good time capsule of New York, especially, you know, it’s like 10 years old now,” he explained.

The creative burden of the series was immense. He compared making the show to being a parent, “rounding up a bunch of kids—like a hundred kids—to go on a field trip,” contrasting it with the carefree fun he had just acting on Parks and Recreation.

These comments aren’t particularly surprising. Indeed, it’s been 11 years since that original first season and 5 years since the third season, and there’s been nothing about its future since.

Season 3, as you may remember, subtitled Moments in Love (2021), marked a massive pivot for the show. Shifting the focus entirely away from Dev (Ansari) to follow Denise (Lena Waithe) and Alicia (Naomi Ackie), it served as an unconventional epilogue to the series. Based on Ansari’s latest comments, that epilogue is truly the end.

That big change came after the release of Season 2 in 2017, when the show went on an indefinite hiatus. In early 2018, at the height of the #MeToo movement, Ansari faced a highly publicized allegation of sexual misconduct stemming from a controversial account of a bad date. In the wake of the ensuing backlash (both against him and for him), Ansari took a deliberate step back from the public eye and the limelight of his own show. Ansari was still involved but not at center stage; he directed all five episodes and co-wrote them with Waithe, but only appeared on screen for a few fleeting minutes. Dev’s story was over; it was time to pass the baton. Ansari would also go on to appear in his fourth Netflix Original stand-up special, titled Nightclub Comedian, in 2022.

Are you disappointed we’ll never get another season of Master of None? Let us know in the comments.