Animal Kingdom season 5 halted its production earlier this year due to the current global health crisis. The filming schedule of the fifth installment was hanging up in the air over the past few months. But, there's no need to worry about it now since cast and crew are officially back to work.
According to a recent report from TVLine, Animal Kingdom season 5 got back in production on Monday, September 7. It can be recalled that filming of the upcoming installment was forced to shut down due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Since then, there's no news as to when everything could start again.
Now that everyone is back to work, we'll just have to wait and see when the new season will premiere on TNT. CarterMatt noted that a late October or early November release date is possible. This is very likely -- unless the series encountered some filming setbacks again.
Even though production officially started, the health of the cast and crew remains to be the top priority. There could be changes how filming is done to ensure their safety while working on the set. The upcoming installment might be different this time around.
As for what stories are coming, Animal Kingdom season 5 follows the Cody Boys living in a new world following Smurf's (Ellen Barkin) death. She is gone for good, but her presence might still felt as the family deals with the aftermath of everything that happened.
Smurf is one of the most significant characters since the beginning of the series. Even though she's dead now, we could still see a bit of her story being fleshed out. Her past might be explored, especially how she became a power-player.
Meanwhile, the remaining Cody starts from the scratch in Animal Kingdom season 5. They need to move forward and figure thigs out on their own. J (Finn Cole) might be in control this time around. However, Deran (Jake Weary), Pope (Shawn Hatosy), and Craig (Ben Robson) won't entirely agree with this idea.
Their operations need to get going even after Smurf's death. J thinks that he is a leader and a master strategist. But, this won't work from Deran, Pope, and Craig. They're going to question J's actions, as well as how he leads their operations. A potential conflict may arise at some point.
As for the status of other characters, it remains to be seen how Angela's presence impacts the Codys in Animal Kingdom season 5. There are a lot of questions and mysteries about Emily Deschanel's character right now. But, she could be a powerful addition -- just like Smurf.
