‘Atlanta’ Season Three Is on Its Way [Video]

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Fans have been patiently waiting for the return of the critically-acclaimed “Atlanta.” Finally, Donald Glover, the show’s creator, shared a teaser to the third season that has fans excited.

Glover released the teaser on Halloween. It was seen on a site called Gilga. However, when trying to access the site, a prompt pops up that says, “WHILE UNDER CONSTRUCTION, GILGA IS A “NITE-SITE” OPERATIONAL HOURS ARE 8PM-3AM.” The teaser is a minute-long and features no dialogue from any main characters.

Viewers can only see Brian Tyree Henry’s character Paper Boi or Al, near the end. He is seen sitting down, wearing a sweater with “FAKE” in yellow text written on it. In the same scene with him, two people are standing facing the wall.

Release Date To Be Announced

The exact release date has not been shared, but the season will definitely premiere in 2022. FX president John Landgraf stated back in August 2021 that the release date would be revealed “within a couple [of] months” and that the show would arrive in the first half of 2022. Part of the reason for the release date not being announced is related to the ongoing production of Season 4.

All four of the main characters and their respective actors will be returning as well. Glover as Earnest “Earn” Marks, Lakeith Stanfield as Darius Epps, and Zazie Beetz as Vanessa Keefer join Al in the main cast. 

Atlanta follows Earn as he manages his rapper cousin, Al. Along with Darius, the trio gets mixed up into all kinds of troubles as they try to make it big. The first season chronicled Paper boi’s start as he and Earn get exposed to the realities of the music industry. Season 2 put the duo’s relationship to the test as Al was reconsidering having Earn as his manager. The following season appears to take place in Europe as Paper Boi is set to perform in Clark County’s European tour.

Delay Upon Delay

With the last season being three years old, it is a relief for “Atlanta” fans to get another taste of their beloved show finally. Initially ordered a new season in June 2018, but the release was pushed back due to production delays. The season would have been released in 2019 if not for conflicting actor schedules. Beetz stared in “Joker,” and Henry had a role in “Godzilla vs. Kong” the same year.

Glover too was busy with his second album and voiced Simba in the live-action “Lion King” remake. Unfortunately, the coronavirus pandemic further delayed plans and pushed back the show further. On the bright side, Glover did use the pandemic to write both seasons three and four. The release of the teaser hopefully means the show is back on track. Fans will be treated to ten episodes followed by eight more in Season 4.

“Dave” vs. “Atlanta”

FX has brought multiple new shows since “Atlanta” last premiered. One of those shows is “Dave,” a comedy series also existing in the rap world. Naturally, fans quickly compared the two shows as both follow people trying to make it in the music industry.

The show’s co-creator, David Andrew Burd, is also a rapper like Donald Glover. Both use their experiences in the music industry to help influence what goes on in their shows. Both shows have two seasons that have received favorable reviews, becoming very successful for FX Networks. However, Glover did not take too kindly to the comparisons, refusing to see the two as equals.

He tweeted, “and just for the record, im watching yall sayin ‘dave’ is on par. like yall forgot what we did. no disrespect.” His reaction, now deleted, sparked up the debate, with some noting that the two shows share most of the same fanbase.

Burd, on the other hand, claimed to be a “big fan” of “Atlanta” and called it a “great show” in an interview with The New York Times in June of 2021. He, like some others, feels the two shows can not be compared and are very different. “I think our show is trying to be funny—a lot more jokes. Theirs is just the tonal brilliance. I see them as different shows.”

Written by Chiagozie Onyewuchi
Edited by Sheena Robertson

Sources:

Tom’s Guide: Atlanta season 3 teaser trailer, cast and everything else we know; by Henry T. Casey
Screen Rant: Why Atlanta Season 3 Took So Long To Make; by Josephine Michele
Complex: Donald Glover’s Comments on ‘Atlanta’ and ‘Dave’ Comparisons Have People Talking; by Trace William Cowen

Featured and Top Image Courtesy of DeShaun Craddock’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
First Inset Image Courtesy of Gage Skidmore’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Second Inset Image Courtesy of Kayla Johnson’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License