This is per a new profile in The Hollywood Reporter, focused on the return of Ted Lasso after a more than four-year hiatus. Though the story doesn’t get too specific, it sounds like there was some kind of falling out between Sudeikis and original showrunner Bill Lawrence as the show went on. Lawrence left ahead of season three to focus on Shrinking and Bad Monkey, and sources in the THR story say there was “tension mounting” before Lawrence’s exit. For his part, Sudeikis just says, “Bill never yelled at me and I never yelled at him.”
But that third season without Lawrence was difficult, for reasons both in and out of Sudeikis’ control. There were COVID delays, but also delays because Sudeikis had a penchant for writing scripts up until the last minute, and pulling SNL-style late nights to make them happen after a full day of shooting. The episodes got longer, production took far longer than expected, and reportedly went over budget. Says co-creator Brendan Hunt, “It was death by a thousand paper cuts.”
For the fourth season, Jack Burditt, who has worked on shows like 30 Rock and Modern Family, has come aboard as showrunner. He also speaks somewhat cryptically about whatever happened between Lawrence and Sudeikis. “He tried to give me a lowdown of what to be prepared for,” Burditt says, recalling a phone call he got from Lawrence when he took the Ted Lasso job. “He says, ‘Here’s how to deal with the show, here’s how to deal with Jason. …’ I think we spoke for about 20 minutes and then he said, ‘We should continue to have these conversations every one or two weeks’… I have not talked to him since.” (Lawrence’s Doozer Productions is still involved with the show.) Adds Burditt later, “I know he’s got this reputation, and I know he drove Bill insane, but I honestly feel like Jason’s easy. At one point, and I don’t even remember where we were or what we were shooting, but I just put an arm around him, and I go, ‘I’m so glad you called me.'”
Keep scrolling for more great stories.