Good but bittersweet news for fans of The Americans. The hit FX drama series, which focuses on Russian spies living undercover as Americans in the 1980s, is currently in its fourth season, with three more episodes to go, and FX has renewed the critically acclaimed show for not one but two more seasons! There’s a catch, though; just as the producers said in the past, Season 6 will serve as the final season and will conclude the epic spy tale.
The Americans will finish its fourth season later this year, before returning in 2017 for a 13-episode Season 5 and then concluding in 2018 with a 10-episode sixth and final season. The series' co-showrunners and executive producers Joe Weisberg and Joel Fields have also signed a deal to develop another series for FX.
The Americans has had average ratings, mostly boosted by DVR gains. Despite this, the series has near universal critical acclaim, so it looks like FX is doing us all a solid and letting this show wrap up on its own terms. Season 4 of The Americans is currently the highest rated show of 2016 on Metacritic with a score of 95. That’s impressive (if a little surprising considering its Game of Thrones-sized competition), but the Emmy voters mostly overlook the show, though The Americans has won Outstanding Drama series from both the Television Critics Association and the Critics Choice Television Awards.
For those who want to know what all the hubbub about the drama is about, The Americans follows Phil (Matthew Rhys) and Elizabeth Jennings (Keri Russell), two Soviet spies sent to live undercover in America as husband and wife during the Cold War. The two must face both physical and emotional danger as they perform missions for Russia while trying to keep their secrets from their unsuspecting children, and their FBI Agent neighbor, Stan Beeman, playbed by the fabulous Noah Emmerich. You can see him and more in the trailer for the upcoming episode below.
This renewal is great news for fans of the show, who now have confirmation that there will be an ending waiting for them down the road. Will Phil and Elizabeth survive with their family intact? Will Russia win the Cold War? (Probably not, but stranger things have happened on TV.) There’s still two years worth of twists, intrigue, and sexy spy stuff left to happen, so The Americans' fanbase can rest easy tonight.
Again, The Americans' fourth season isn’t over yet, and you can find the next three episodes on FX on Wednesday nights, with the season finale airing on Wednesday, June 8, at 10 PM ET/PT on FX.
