The Orville finished Season 2 in April 2019, and that means it has been well over a year since fans had a chance to see the funny sci-fi show.
There is good news, and that is that fans will get a third season of the show. However, there will be significant changes, including a new network and a possible shift in the format of the show.
Here is everything we know so far about The Orville Season 3.
- Updated November 14, 2021: Added announced release date.
This article provides everything that is known about The Orville Season 3 and all related news. As such, this article will be updated over time with news, rumors, and analysis. Meanwhile, let’s dig down into what is known so far.
Is there going to be a Season 3 of The Orville?
Fox renewed The Orville for Season 3 in May 2019, and most fans assumed it would be back on the broadcast network that winter. However, something changed two months later.
Seth MacFarlane said that he was not able to get the third season of the show to Fox by December 2019 and that caused the two sides to discuss alternate accommodations.
“As the show has evolved and become more ambitious production-wise, I determined that I would not be able to deliver episodes until 2020, which would be challenging for the network,” MacFarlane said. “So, we began to discuss how best to support the third season in a way that worked for the show.”
That ended up with MacFarlane moving the third season of The Orville to Hulu, putting the popular sci-fi series on a streaming service instead of a regular broadcast network.
There is no word on if moving away from Fox will allow MacFarlane a chance to change up The Orville for the third season, maybe making some of the rumor more adult-oriented.
Release date latest: When does The Orville Season 3 come out?
Season 1 of The Orville premiered in September 2017, and Season 2 premiered in December 2018.
However, the popular sci-fi comedy didn’t show up in December on Hulu, and while Hulu has said it would hit their service late in 2020, there is no word yet on when that will be.
There was no telling when The Orville Season 3 will air, and even MacFarlane was not sure when we can see it again.
“Man, do we have some good stuff in store for you on #TheOrville season 3, if the world ever starts spinning again,” MacFarlane posted on Twitter in regards to the third season of the show.
The third season of The Orville was shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic in the middle of shooting a scene, so we won’t know anything until the production restarts.
“We were right in the middle of shooting an episode of The Orville,” MacFarlane explained. “So it’s like, when this thing airs at long last, whenever that is, one episode is gonna be such that between one scene to the next, people are suddenly gonna gain 20 lbs and have long, white beards.”
The release date was finally revealed.
The Orville Season 3 will premiere on Hulu on March 10, 2022.
This is three years since Season 2 aired on Fox.
The Orville Season 3 cast updates
The main cast of The Orville will return for Season 3 when the series finally premieres its next season on Hulu.
Seth MacFarlane, who is also the show’s creator, will return as Captain Ed Mercer. Adrianne Palicki will also be back in her role as Commander Kelly Grayson.
Also returning is Penny Johnson Jerald as medical officer Claire Finn and Scott Grimes as helmsman Gordon Malloy.
Other actors returning will be Peter Macon (Lieutenant Commander Bortus), J Lee (Lieutenant Commander John LaMarr), Mark Jackson (Isaac), Jessica Szohr (Lieutenant Talla Keyali), and Chad L Coleman (Klyden).
A new character from Season 2 was Jessica Szohr as Lt. Talla Keyali, the ship’s security chief. She will also likely return after replacing Lt. Alara Kitan (Halston Sage), who left the cast in 2019.
“I don’t think [Kitan] is coming back as a regular. But, we love that character,” executive producer David Goodman said. “If there is an opportunity to bring her back story-wise, I think she would be open to it, and we would love to have her back.”
There will also be some new faces in Season 3.
There is one name that has already been announced, with Anne Winters (13 Reasons Why), who will play a new character named Charly Burke. There is no word on who she is or what role she will take on in the third season of The Orville.
Eliza Taylor (The 100) will appear as a guest star.
The Orville Season 3 spoilers
Goodman said he would like to delve into the fallout from Isaac’s decisions in Identity and Identity Part II.
In Identity, Isaac goes dark, and the Orville heads off to his homeworld Kaylon 1 to revive him. Isaac comes back to life, but his coworkers uncover scary news.
The denizens of his planet rose up to kill the biological race that created them. The robots plan the same for Earth after gaining control of the Orville.
After a massive battle, things end well, but there is still a permanent dark shadow hanging over Isaac.
The Orville Season 3 will premiere on Hulu on March 10, 2022.
I think it really sucks that we could watch it on cable and now have to pay EXTRA through the nose for it, like cable isn’t ALREADY expensive enough…No thanks, guess we’ll just do without it on principle alone.You buzzards just “GREEDIED” yourselves out of half your former audience.