Netflix’s Never Have I Ever has cast The Goldbergs star, Jeff Garlin, for the show’s fourth and final season. The news was reported on Wednesday, marking the first TV series that Garlin has boarded since he left The Goldbergs in 2021.
Never Have I Ever was renewed for Season 4 in September and was confirmed to be the dramedy’s final season. It has enjoyed high success since it first hit the streaming platform in 2020.
Details about Season 4 are starting to come together, including the addition of Garlin to the cast. Garlin will reportedly portray a man named Len who sparks interest from Devi’s (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) grandmother, Nirmala (Ranjita Chakravarty).
In the show, Nirmala is assumed to be widowed and is currently living with her late son’s wife, Nalini (Poorna Jagannathan). While Nirmala has seemingly sworn off relationships, Len’s sweetness will make her rethink her stance.
Never Have I Ever Season 4 doesn’t have a release date yet but is expected to premiere sometime in 2023.
Before being cast in Never Have I Ever, Garlin starred in The Goldbergs for nine seasons. He departed the show amidst allegations of misconduct on the set.
Never Have I Ever Season 4 details
In addition to Garlin’s casting, several other details have also arisen about Never Have I Ever Season 4. Garlin won’t be the only new cast member, as Michael Cimino has joined the cast, too.
The 23-year-old actor will portray a character named Ethan, the newest heartthrob at Sherman Oaks High School. His role was revealed on September 24 when Netflix released a short video confirming and teasing Season 4.
In the video, Cimino teased that his character would be a “smoldering bad boy” type. It will be interesting to see if Ethan and Devi strike up a friendship or relationship, as Devi having a boyfriend was also teased.
Meanwhile, the video also confirmed that Darren Barnet will return as Paxton in Season 4. His return was uncertain after Paxton graduated and seemingly left for college at the end of Season 3.
However, Season 4 will still manage to somehow work him into the series. One other confirmed detail is that there will be a wedding in Season 4.
It is unclear who is getting married, but the most likely candidates are Nalini, Nirmala, or Devi’s cousin, Kamala (Richa Moorjani).
Why did Jeff Garlin exit The Goldbergs?
News of Garlin’s exit from The Goldbergs was announced a year ago. After the announcement, the show wrote off his character, Murray, with his last appearance on the show occurring in Season 9.
His exit came after multiple allegations of physical and verbal misconduct were raised against him, sparking an HR investigation. The allegations weren’t made public, but three former The Goldbergs employees told Vanity Fair that Garlin had engaged in physical and verbal conduct that made them uncomfortable.
According to them, he used inappropriate language and hugged or touched individuals on set even if they weren’t comfortable with it.
These allegations reportedly led to a three-year investigation into his conduct before the announcement of his exit. However, Garlin has adamantly denied any such allegations.
While speaking to Vanity Fair, he brushed off the allegations as a joke that was misinterpreted. He also stated that the things HR approached him about were “silly” things and that there wasn’t any “story” to tell regarding the allegations.
He also said that he was a “hugger” and that HR had never said anything to him about hugs, nor did anyone give any indication they were uncomfortable with his hugs.