So many unanswered questions. NBC canceled Manifest despite its shocking season 3 finale cliffhanger. Luckily, Netflix saved the day, ordering a fourth and final season, thanks to a new crop of fans desperate to find out what happened to Flight 828.
The network pulled the plug on Manifest in June 2021, days after the two-part finale aired. Viewers hoping that the episode would wrap up loose ends in the story were disappointed, as even more twists were introduced into the series’ expansive landscape.
Grace (Athena Karkanis) — spoiler alert — seemingly died after an altercation with Angelina (Holly Taylor) as the 828 passenger abducted Grace and Ben’s (Josh Dallas) baby, Eden. Meanwhile, the couple’s son, Cal (Jack Messina), returned in the form of a teenager (Ty Doran) after going missing when he touched the plane’s tailfin. Plus, the love triangle between Michaela (Melissa Roxburgh), Zeke (Matt Long) and Jared (J.R. Ramirez) seemed to be reignited by old jealousies.
In tandem with the show’s cancellation, seasons 1 and 2 made their debut on Netflix, taking up a lengthy stay in the streaming platform’s Top 10 list. As new viewers discovered the series, they were saddened to learn of its demise, which ramped up conversations about a season 4 renewal.
Creator Jeff Rake, who initially sold the concept to NBC for six seasons that were already mapped out, continued to advocate for the show’s continuation as conversations broke down about a renewal.
“We’re trying to find a way to conclude the series,” the writer tweeted in June 2021. “Could take a week, a month, a year. But we’re not giving up. You deserve an end to the story.”
One way Rake hoped to give fans what they wanted was in the form of a movie. “I had giant cliffhangers in the season 3 finale, so I had every intention to have three more seasons to slow-burn the back half of the story,” he told Entertainment Weekly. “I’m reading the writing on the wall that we may not find a home for three more seasons of the show, so I moved to plan B: Some platform would bankroll a feature or a movie finale, like we saw with Timeless, Firefly and Deadwood. I just need a modest budget to tell the story. I am personally sketching out how to consolidate the back half of the series into a much more streamlined, cut-to-the-chase two-hour finale that would distill all of the hanging chads of the series. That’s where my head is at.”
However, news broke in July 2021 that NBC and Netflix were once again in talks with the show’s studio, Warner Bros. TV, about a possible fourth season. Netflix announced their deal for a 20-episode final season in August 2021. While Rake won’t get to see his six-season vision come to life, he will get the chance to answer all the mysteries of Flight 828 in the super-sized final chapter.
Scroll through the gallery for everything we know about what could come next for Manifest:
Fans saw Grace die after being stabbed by Angelina, but first the mother of three reunited with her now-teenage son, Cal. However, she certainly would not be the first Manifest character to be resurrected. “There could be a spooky haunting!” Karkanis told TV Insider in June 2021. Rake, for his part, kept his descriptions of Grace’s ending more vague, but noted that he “did not make this decision [to kill off Grace] lightly.” “There’s nothing flip about this,” he said. “There’s nothing manipulative about this. There’s nothing spiteful about this. This was part of our story, and her significance in Manifest remains as strong as ever. Her character lives on through Cal, through Olive (Luna Blaise), through baby Eden, and of course through Ben as he tries to carry on without her.” Peter Kramer/NBC
Ben was trapped in a Calling when Angelina attacked Grace, so viewers have yet to witness his reaction. “A season 4 of Manifest for Ben is absolutely centered around processing, digesting, coming to terms with such an unspeakable loss, and then trying to find a way to seek vengeance, to kind of justify the act in terms of finding some meaning out of it,” Rake detailed to TV Insider, adding that the moment “becomes the absolute driving force for his character not only in season 4 but in the back half of the series.” Dallas predicted that his character will continue down a reckless path in the wake of the tragedy. “He is going to have a lot to deal with and whether or not he keeps that sort of dark edge that’s been creeping into him into season 4 and whether that gets bigger. … I can imagine that not only is he going to be even more propelled to find out what happened to him, but what happened to Grace and who’s responsible and where’s his baby and where’s Angelina,” the actor suggested. “I don’t know if he’s going to handle all of those things within the letter of the law.” Peter Kramer/Warner Brothers/NBC
After touching the plane’s tailfin, Cal vanished before popping back up in a Calling with Ben, Michaela and Saanvi (Parveen Kaur). When he returned home, he was a teenager — suddenly the same age he would have been if he had not gone on Flight 828 with his dad and aunt. “It’s for Ben and the others to figure out where he’s been, why he was there, what happened there,” Rake teased, noting that Cal’s sacrifice of more than five years of his life was one he “made for everyone in the world.” The brief reappearance of the plane’s pilot, Captain Daly (Frank Deal), during the season 3 finale offered another clue. “Ben understandably is going to come to believe that his disappearance, the passengers’ disappearance, Captain Daly, Cal, the tailfin itself, that they’ve all been going to the same place that this divine intervention is the puppet master moving the strings,” Rake said. “As Ben, Michaela, Saanvi, everyone continues to try to put the pieces together, they’re going to try to decipher whether it’s possible to access that place if this is purgatory, some unknown destination that no one knows about. … That’ll be part and parcel of how they try to save themselves.” Peter Kramer/NBC
Jared essentially told Michaela during the season 3 finale that he only let her marry Zeke because he thought her now-husband was dying. Zeke then informed Michaela that they needed to talk, spelling trouble ahead for the beloved pair. “I don’t think that Zeke is going to throw in the towel so easily and I think that Michaela is deeply conflicted,” Rake hinted. “We’re gonna watch that conflict play out. It would be too easy for the story and it would be too easy for the characters to walk away from that marriage. … I would never expect Michaela or Zeke to throw the towel in on each other, nor would I expect Jared to throw in the towel. He made his intentions quite clear standing out there on the street in those final moments of the season finale. So you can expect much more heartache and tension as we continue to kind of play the sine curve of that triangle.” Peter Kramer/Warner Brothers
Saanvi had a Calling for the first time in a very long while, leading her to question whether her return of the tailfin to the ocean cleared her for murdering The Major (Elizabeth Marvel). Rake acknowledged that “it appears that Saanvi has redeemed herself,” but other passengers will find themselves in similar situations as they navigate the gray areas of right and wrong. He anticipated that questions of who will live and die will be addressed “all the way to the end of the story.” Peter Kramer/NBC
Long booked an NBC pilot titled Getaway in July 2021, casting doubt on his future with Manifest if it was saved. However, Deadline reported that the actor’s deal on the series could make him available to reprise his role as Zeke for season 4. Peter Kramer/Warner Brothers
Many questions arose about the passengers’ approaches to their return during season 3, with Angelina, Eagan (Ali Lopez-Sohaili) and Adrian (Jared Grimes) creating a movement against the Stones. The rivalry is far from over too. “[In season 3] we were telling the origin story of a triumvirate — Angelina, Eagan and Adrian — who have come together to represent the oppositional viewpoint of Ben, Michaela, Saanvi and Cal,” the series creator revealed. “This chasm, this dichotomy between two groups of passengers is going to drive conflict and tension and build the stakes for the seasons to come as we move closer to the death date.” Rake hinted that Angelina could take on a larger role in future episodes, saying that she “is now as much a part of the fabric of this story as anyone else.” NBC
Deadline first reported in August 2021 that Warner Bros. TV had resumed talks with Netflix about bringing the show back after its cancellation. In addition, WBTV started negotiations with the stars and writers to return for the new season after their options previously expired in June. Rake tweeted a link to the outlet's report, writing, “No comment. 😎” Peter Kramer/NBC/Warner Brothers
Netflix renewed Manifest for a fourth and final season on August 28, 2021. That’s Manifest Day for diehard fans. The flight number inspired fans to take a day each year to celebrate the show. Peter Kramer/NBC
While the first season had 16 episodes, the second and third chapters only had 13 installments. Manifest season 4, however, will be the longest yet with 20 episodes. Expect the final episodes to be released in at least two parts. Peter Kramer/Warner Brothers
Though the series was mapped out as a six-season arc, Rake assured fans that Netflix's decision to wrap up Manifest with the fourth season doesn't change much. "The endgame won't change at all," he teased to Entertainment Weekly in August 2021. The creator continued, "I am absolutely confident that 20 episodes gives me enough time to tell the entirety of the story as I always intended to. When I've talked in the past about having a roadmap all the way to the end of series, that didn't mean that I had a roadmap for literally every single episode." Peter Kramer/NBC
Deadline reported in September 2021 that Dallas, Roxburgh, Ramirez, Kaur, Blaise, Taylor and Doran will return as series regulars in season 4. Karkanis and Messina, meanwhile, will exit the show after being written out in the season 3 finale. Long’s status is still up in the air due to his commitment to the NBC pilot Getaway. Peter Kramer/NBC)
After booking another show, Long confirmed that he will at least appear in some of Manifest's new season, schedule permitting. "I will be back for some of it, we’re just trying to find out the maximum I can do,” he said backstage at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards in September 2021. “I love the character in the show so much, but as you know, when the show was canceled I booked another show. It was a pilot. We don’t know what’s happening with it yet. It’s also a really awesome project. So we’re just trying to work out schedules. Everybody wants the best thing for everyone so fingers crossed it all works out for the best.” Dan Steinberg/Invision/AP/Shutterstock
0 Comments