Final Season of 'Broad City' Gets Premiere Date

Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson want Broad City viewers to know one thing about the final season: "It's so good."


Comedy Central on Thursday announced that the fifth and final season of the critical favorite comedy will premiere Jan. 24. The creators released a teaser video of series highlights — the pair often running madly through New York City or away from an undesirable situation — to show how far they've come in their sprint to the finish line with season five.


In reality, the pair took their time delivering the final episodes. Similar to the 17-month gap between seasons three and four, Glazer and Jacobson will be returning as their Broad City alter egos more than a year after the fourth cycle ended. Last season premiered in September 2017, launching amid a divisive climate and shortly before the height of the #MeToo movement. The season covered timely topics, made headlines over the decision to bleep President Trump's name, and tackled election rage in an empowering Trump-aimed episode titled "Witches" in which Jacobson making her directorial debut.


"After the election, it both ignited and allowed us to take a step back from the show, on a personal level, and also ignite what we believe in as real people and what we are trying to say in our art, which right now is a TV show," Jacobson told THR of the duo's approach to season four.


Acknowledging that they were growing with each season, she said Broad City does feel "different than the normal sitcom in its growth" and that they aimed to tackle the news cycle but still entertain. "We want you to come and laugh and get to escape reality, but the show does exist right now. These characters are living within our world, so to not talk about it felt really wrong," she said.


It remains to be seen what they will tackle in their final 10-episode run. The news that the previously announced fifth season would be the last for Broad City came earlier this year, when Glazer and Jacobson signed a first-look deal with Comedy Central parent company Viacom to continue creating content for their soon-to-be former network. At the time, the pair had three comedies in development, and while none of the projects had Glazer or Jacobson writing or starring, Comedy Central president Kent Alterman said he was "taking it as it comes," since the duo are now balancing film careers and other projects.


"Broad City has been our baby and first love for almost 10 years, since we started as a web series. It's been a phenomenal experience, and we've put ourselves into it completely. Broad City's always had a spontaneous pace and feeling, and ending after season five honors that spirit. We are very excited to bring new voices and points of view to Comedy Central and continue our collaboration together in new ways," Glazer and Jacobson said in a joint statement about ending the show.


The fifth season of Broad City, which debuts Jan. 24 at 10 p.m., will be paired with a new offering from Comedy Central, The Other Two. The half-hour, scripted comedy was created by former Saturday Night Live head writers Chris Kelly and Sarah Schneider, who executive produce the series with Lorne Michaels.