After directing the highest-rated episode in Jane the Virgin history, Gina Rodriguez is dropping hints that the popular CW series might be ending next season. The star and co-executive producer of the Golden Globe-nominated series was recently at a Women to Watch panel in Austin, Texas when she announced that she hopes to direct more episodes of the show “in our final season.” After murmurs from the crowd she quickly backtracked saying, “I don’t know.”
This isn’t the first time Rodriguez has alluded to Jane the Virgin coming to a close. In a February appearance on Marc Maron’s podcast, she explained how series creator Jennie Snyder-Urman has a “very clear arc” about where the show is going and where it’s ending. Rodriguez said she couldn’t give specifics but “there’s an end” she knows about. When pressed by Maron about whether the series would hit the 100 episode mark – a milestone for future syndication – Rodriguez wouldn’t confirm or deny. (It’s worth pointing out that if the series were to have a 17-episode season like season four it would put them two episodes short of 100.) The CW hasn’t officially renewed the series nor commented on whether season five will be the last.
None of this is particularly surprising. The series moved from a prominent mid-week slot to Fridays where its ratings have been down about 30% since last season despite the boost from Rodriguez directing. The series has hit bumps since the season three death of Jane’s husband, Michael (Brett Dier), a decision that left the series trying to find its footing. Though the fourth season has returned audiences to the Jane they know and love, the series definitely feels like it’s heading towards a conclusion.
After getting a Golden Globe win as Jane, a role Rodriguez has spent four years of her life with, she could be ready to branch out. As it is, she’s developing two shows for the CW: the female-focused Femme and Illegal, a story about undocumented immigrants based on the life of Jane the Virgin writer Rafael Agustin. She’s also set to develop the series Have Mercy on CBS. And if that’s not enough from the star, she’s also receiving rave reviews for her work as a leading lady in Alex Garland’s big-budget sci-fi film Annihilation and is set to star in Catherine Hardwicke’s remake of Miss Bala this year.