Abbott Elementary (season 3)

The third season of the American television comedy ''Abbott Elementary'' created by Quinta Brunson premiered in the United States on ABC on February 7, 2024, and concluded on May 22. The season consisted of 14 episodes, fewer episodes than the previous season due to the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike. Like the previous season, the season stars Brunson, Tyler James Williams, Janelle James, Lisa Ann Walter, Chris Perfetti, William Stanford Davis and Sheryl Lee Ralph.

''Abbott Elementary'' is presented in a mockumentary format similar to one of ''The Office'' and ''Modern Family'', and follows a documentary crew recording the lives of teachers working in underfunded schools including the fictional Willard R. Abbott Elementary School, a predominantly Black Philadelphia public school. Three days after the season premiere, the series was renewed for a fourth season.

Cast and characters

Main

* Quinta Brunson as Janine Teagues, a second-grade teacher at Abbott and hopes to improve the lives of her students by making the best of the poor situation the school district makes teachers work in. At the beginning of the season, she begins working for the school district.
* Tyler James Williams as Gregory Eddie, a first-grade teacher who was initially hired as a substitute replacement, and who harbors a crush on Janine.
* Janelle James as Ava Coleman, the school's tone-deaf principal who consistently bullies Janine and gives the staff reasons to believe she is poor at her job; a job in which she received after blackmailing the superintendent.
* Lisa Ann Walter as Melissa Schemmenti, a second-grade teacher at Abbott who has questionable connections with the Philly locals, but uses them to help the school.
* Chris Perfetti as Jacob Hill, an eighth-grade history teacher who tries his best to help Janine with her plans to improve Abbott.
* William Stanford Davis as Mr. Johnson, the school's janitor who is seen as lazy, but consistent with his job.
* Sheryl Lee Ralph as Barbara Howard, a religious kindergarten teacher, adamant about keeping with tradition, and a mother-figure whom Janine looks up to.

Recurring

* Josh Segarra as Manny, the leader of a group of school district representatives for Philadelphia.
* Benjamin Norris as Simon, a school district representative under Manny who works alongside Janine.
* Kimia Behpoornia as Emily, a school district representative under Manny who works alongside Janine.
* Mason Renfro as Alex Perkins, a student in Janine's classroom.
* Zack Fox as Tariq Temple, Janine's ex-boyfriend and an aspiring rapper who is currently dating the mom of one of Barbara's students.
* Ben Onyx Dowdy as Warren, an HR Employee who works at the district.
* Keegan-Michael Key as John Reynolds, the Philadelphia School District's new superintendent.
* Karan Soni as Avi, an EMT who enters a romance with Jacob.
* Pam Trotter as Dia, an admissions office worker at Abbott.
* Jerry Minor as Mr. Morton, a colleague of Jacob whom he shares a complicated relationship with.
* Courtney Taylor as Erika, a friend of Janine who attempts to improve her social circle.

Guest

* Bruno Amato as Gary, a vending machine stocker who begins dating Melissa.
* Jalen Hurts, Brandon Graham and Jason Kelce as themselves, members of the Philadelphia Eagles who participate in Abbott's career day.
* Mike O'Malley as Captain Robinson, the captain of the Philadelphia fire department who visits Abbott.
* Sabrina Brier as Jessca, a substitute teacher for Janine's classroom.
* Casey Frey as Timothy, a F.A.D.E. representative who aspires to be like Tariq.
* Aparna Nancherla as Caroline, an unhelpful F.A.D.E. representative who follows Timothy.
* Larry Owens as Zach, Jacob's boyfriend, later ex.
* Shirley Jordan as Delisha Sloss, a member of Barbara's church.
* Sabrina Wu as Mx. Cassidy Geoffrey, a substitute teacher for Janine's class.
* Carlease Burke as Sister Sipp, a member of Barbara's church choir.
* Bradley Cooper as himself, a famous actor who visits Abbott Elementary.
* June Diane Raphael as Elizabeth Washington, Chief Education Officer for the Philadelphia Board of Education, who visits Abbott Elementary to document the school as a historic landmark.
* Jennifer Elise Cox as Joan, a woman working under Elizabeth.
* David Clayton Rogers as Willy R. Abbott V, a direct descendent of school founder Willard R. Abbott.
* Cree Summer as Rosalyn Inez, a librarian hired by the district for Janine's library program.
* Tatyana Ali as Crystal, a former sorority sister of Ava who is now the principal of another school.
* Brandon Kyle Goodman as Richard Tyler Williams, a coworker of Crystal.
* Garon Grigsby as Charles Pearlman, a man who offers a loan for Gregory's Garden Goofball program.
* Nikea Gamby-Turner as Chanae, a cafeteria custodian for the school.
* Reggie Conquest as Devin, a cafeteria custodian who works alongside Chanae.
* Questlove as himself, a musician who visits Abbott who is also an old friend of Ava.
* Lana Condor as Olivia, a coworker of Avi.
* Kevin Hart as himself, an actor and comedian who Janine suspects could be her father.
* Richard Brooks as Gerald, Barbara's husband.
* Iyana Halley as Taylor Howard, Barbara's daughter.
* Shea Coulee as Lisa Condo, a drag queen.
* Symone as Divine Intervention, a drag queen.
* Taraji P. Henson as Vanetta Teagues, Janine's mother.
* Michaela Watkins as Miss Barco, a teacher at Krystal's school.

Episodes

Production

Development

The series was renewed for a third season in January 2023, months prior to the conclusion of the second. The renewal was announced by Craig Erwich at the Television Critics Association's Winter 2023 press tour. When speaking of the third season renewal, Channing Dungey, chairman and CEO of Warner Bros. Television Group had this to say:

Brunson, Halpern, Schumacker and Einhorn are all expected to return as executive producers. Writing for the season was originally expected to commence on May 1, 2023; however the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike and 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike postponed this date indefinitely. Brunson, Sheryl Lee Ralph, and Lisa Ann Walter are among those from the cast who have publicly supported the strike, and as confirmed by writer Brittani Nichols, the strike affected the number of episodes and start date of the third season. In May 2023, it was announced via a press release by ABC, that the season premiere would be pushed back to an early 2024 air date. On November 10, 2023, the season was announced as consisting of 14 episodes.

Writing

Following writing delays due to the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes, writing began that October. The writers chose to explain the five month time-jump from the second season by having the camera crew being robbed, as they felt it was logical that way. They had envisioned including a teacher's strike in the narrative, but decided not to do so as they felt it was "too winky, too meta". As such, they chose to focus on how the difficulties underfunded teachers face by having Janine accept her new job with optimism. Additionally, the writers also consulted with a newly elected board member of the Los Angeles School District and various teachers who joined the WGA picket lines.

Casting

All seven regular cast members from the first two seasons returned; including Quinta Brunson, Tyler James Williams, Janelle James, Lisa Ann Walter, Chris Perfetti, William Stanford Davis and Sheryl Lee Ralph. In January 2024, it was announced that Josh Segarra, Kimia Behpoornia and Benjamin Norris had joined the cast in recurring roles, portraying school district representatives sent to make positive change to Abbott.

Like the seasons before it, the third season features various guest stars, most notably Philadelphia Eagles players Jalen Hurts, Brandon Graham and Jason Kelce. When asked about how the trio made their way on to the show, producer Justin Halpern stated:

In March 2024, it was confirmed that Lana Condor, Keegan-Michael Key, Cree Summer, Tatyana Ali and Karan Soni would guest star and/or recur during the season.

Filming

While being interviewed by ''Deadline Hollywood'', Sheryl Lee Ralph revealed that principal photography for the third season was originally expected to commence in July 2023; however this date was pushed back indefinitely due to the strikes. After both strikes were resolved, the third season was confirmed to begin filming on November 27, 2023. Like the first two seasons, the interior scenes of the series are filmed at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California, with exterior shots of the series being filmed in front of Vermont Elementary School in Los Angeles.

Reception

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has received an approval rating of 100% based on 8 reviews.

Ratings

The season premiered on February 7, 2024, following premiere episodes of ''The Conners'' and ''Not Dead Yet''. The third season retains its time slot of Wednesday nights at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT.

"Willard R. Abbott" aired in a special Sunday-night scheduling following the 96th Academy Awards, resulting in a series high in total viewership, and audience share among viewers 18–49.

References

External links

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{{Abbott Elementary

Abbott Elementary
2024 American television seasons