'Arrested Development' Season 5 Will Be 16 Episodes and Split in Half on Netflix

Netflix will not be releasing the new Arrested Development season in its entirety.The streaming [...]

Netflix will not be releasing the new Arrested Development season in its entirety.

The streaming service announced Wednesday the 16-episode fifth season of the popular comedy series about a dysfunctional family will be split in half, with eight episodes arriving on May 29.

The second half of the season, Entertainment Weekly reports, will debut later this year.

Netflix has split up season releases for its comedies, including The Ranch and the upcoming fourth and final season of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Both Arrested and Kimmy will release the first batch of episodes just in time for the Emmy deadline on May 31.

The streamer recently released a trailer for the upcoming season, as well as "remixed" version of season four. The series also recently confirmed that Jeffrey Tambor would be returning for season five, despite sexual misconduct allegations that led to his firing from Amazon's Transparent.

Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos assured fans previously that the season 4 standalone character format would be abandoned for season 5, with fans finding that "the Bluths will collectively [spend] more quality time" together.

The trailer for season 5, which comes five years after the Bluth family last graced our screens, shows a new and improved family — so improved, in fact, that they're apparently receiving the Family of the Year award (that they're giving themselves).

In other surprising notable news from the trailer, it appears that Lindsey (Portia de Rossi) is running for office, Buster (Tony Hale) has finally ditched his hook for a more practical prosthetic hand, and Maeby (Alia Shawkat) has traded her bushy brown locks for a sleek silver hairdo.

The "remixed" version of season 4, which initially debuted in a Rashomon-style of storytelling to mixed reviews, was dropped onto Netflix Friday, taking the footage from season 4 and reworking it into a traditional 22-episode sitcom format.

"The original season four of Arrested Development on Netflix, as some of you know, experimented with a Rashomon-style of storytelling — with each episode dedicated to the adventure of one member of the Bluth family," Hurwitz explained.

Fans who want to brush up on Arrested Development before season 5 drops on May 29 can watch seasons 1-4 on Netflix, as well as the remixed Fateful Consequences episodes of season 4 that Hurwitz announced last week. (The original season 4 is hiding under "trailers and more" section on the show's official page.)

In addition to Tambor, de Rossi, Hale and Shawkat, Arrested Development also stars Jason Bateman, Will Arnett, Jessica Walter, Michael Cera and David Cross.

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