'The Morning Show' Season 5 Needs To Address These 10 Things (or Else)

'The Morning Show' Season 5 Needs To Address These 10 Things (or Else) Jennifer Aniston as Alex, standing in a hallway, in 'The Morning Show' Season 4.Image via Apple TV By  Christine Persaud Published 20 minutes ago Christine is a freelance writer for Collider with two decades of experience covering all types of TV shows and movies spanning every genre. With a particular affinity for dramas, true crime, sitcoms, and thrillers, if it's a top TV show, Christine has likely watched it and is eager to share her thoughts. When she's not furiously writing away, you can find her enjoying the next binge obsession with a glass of wine in front of the TV. Sign in to your Collider account follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap

Spoiler Alert: This list contains spoilers from 'The Morning Show' Season 4.With The Morning Show being renewed for a fifth season ahead of the fourth season finale, fans are excited to see what happens next. So many questions remain, including who will be appointed to run UBN now that Celine (Marion Cotillard) has been outed for her wrongdoings. With Bradley (Reese Witherspoon) safely back home, her road to recovery likely won't be easy. Then, there's that looming tension between Alex (Jennifer Aniston) and Cory (Billy Crudup).

While it will be some time before Season 5 is made and streams, there are already things that fans want to see addressed in the storyline. Paying attention to these loose ends and burning questions will help ensure another successful season of the long-running Apple TV drama.

1 Cory As the Hero

A close-up of Cory pondering in The Morning Show.Image via Apple TV

Cory is one of the most complicated characters, always on a roller coaster ride through all the show's best episodes. He seems like a jerk, willing to do whatever is necessary to get ahead. But he also goes out of his way to protect the people he loves. He's deeply insecure, and the fact that he had just learned his mother effectively sold her soul to get him a high-ranking newsroom job years prior was a major hit to his self-esteem. He never actually earned that role.

But Cory came through at the end of Season 4, providing Alex with the evidence she needed to prove that Celine was involved in a massive cover-up that cost people's lives, and that she was wrongfully terminated for wanting to come clean about it. He threw his now deceased mother under the bus, though the fact that she left him the evidence suggests it's what she wanted. While Cory has done some awful things, he needs recognition as a hero finally, and to be able to accept it with humility, not feigned arrogance.

2 The Fallout Between Celine and Her Family

Stella standing with her hands in her pockets in The Morning Show.Image via Apple TV

After being outed on national television, Celine had no choice but to step down. She left her post, heading back to France with her brother. She tells him she knows their father will use her as the scapegoat. She'll be forced to go down for the actions of the family, even though she wasn't the only guilty party. But one of the burning questions after the Season 4 finale is what happens to her from here.

While her story has seemingly come to an end, at least a line of dialogue needs to address what happened to her. Did her family's power and money help her avoid jail time? Or is she rotting in a cell for his misdeeds? Knowing where she is and what she's doing will provide closure for the character's arc.

3 Alex's Status at UBN

Alex sitting on the couch on air in The Morning Show.Image via Apple TV

While Alex tries to confront Celine about the truth when she learns that Celine is the one who orchestrated the deepfake of her, Celine turns the tables. She knows about Alex's attempts to bribe a Russian oligarch to help get Bradley out of Belarus. This also implicates Paul in the illegal activity. Alex must resign or else she'll disclose the information. Alex does, declaring on air that she is stepping down.

Thanks to the help and encouragement of her father Martin (Jeremy Irons), however, Alex decides to fight back, no matter the cost. While she's later seen arriving by private plane in Belarus to pick up the now released Bradley, it's unclear if Alex has rejoined UBN. It's likely she has now that she has revealed publicly that her resignation was forced. But Season 5 needs to confirm it.

4 Paul Finding Out What Amanda Did

Amanda in the dark on the phone in The Morning Show.Image via Apple TV

The reason Celine knew what Alex and Paul were up to was because Paul's chief of staff Amanda (Tig Notaro) tipped her off. While Alex reveals to Paul that Celine knows, neither of them can figure out how. And it's not likely that Paul will sit idly by without trying to investigate who leaked the information. There were few people who knew where they were and what they were doing. Going down the list, he's bound to eventually ask Amanda if she had anything to do with it.

Fans need a confrontation between the two to see what happens when Paul figures it out, and what reasoning Amanda gives. While it's implied that she simply wanted to protect Paul from putting himself at risk, it could be something more. She and Celine seemed all too friendly, as though they had worked together in secret before.

5 Claire Getting Out of Jail and Confronting Bradley

Claire on the street on the phone in The Morning Show.Image via Apple TV

Claire's (Bel Powley) role in the new season was a surprise, and the nature of her return was one of the things the show needed to address in Season 4. Her arc ended when she was arrested after Bradley ratted her out right before she was to appear on the show to disclose her findings about the cover-up. While Bradley didn't fear retaliation for doing that, she was afraid that the FBI would punish her irreparably for effectively aiding and abetting a criminal by keeping Claire in hiding. Bradley was already on thin ice given what she did in relation to her brother at the Capitol riots. So, to protect herself, she had no other choice.

With the cover-up coming out and Celine and her family being outed for fudging the EPA report, just as Claire had claimed, will this exonerate her of charges? Most interestingly, seeing a confrontation between her and Bradley would bring closure to that story as well.

6 The Romantic Vibes Between Alex and Paul

Paul and Alex looking at one another in an elevator in The Morning Show.Image via Apple TV

To say things didn't end well between Alex and Paul in Season 3 would be an understatement. She went behind his back, exposed his misdeeds, and blackmailed him, taking back control of UBN and shutting him out. Fans didn't expect to see him again, but his character appears to be one of the hardest to read. Despite the explosive betrayal, he still clearly has feelings for Alex and she for him. So much so that when she's desperate to save her friend Bradley, she appeals to Paul for help, using his influence and connections.

By the end of Season 4, while Paul couldn't help despite trying his best efforts, he was still there for her when she needed him. He declared that they were even, placing his hand on hers as they descended the elevator. The small gesture suggests that something could brew again with them once the dust settles. Whether or not they get back together as one of the show's best couples, the state of their relationship needs to be addressed.

7 Alex's Improving Relationship With Her Father

Martin with his hand in his pocket talking to Alex who is sitting in The Morning Show.Image via Apple TV

Season 4 provided a long-awaited heart-to-heart between Alex and her father that proved revelatory. She learned something she never knew: her mother suffered from severe postpartum depression after giving birth to her. She was so distraught, so out of sorts, that she abandoned the family, never to be seen or heard from again. It isn't even confirmed that she's dead, so Alex's mother could still very well be alive.

Despite delivering this heart-wrenching news to his daughter, explaining his deep-seated resentment towards her all these years, Martin came through in the end. He turned a new leaf, wanting to actually support instead of insult her, now that he has come clean about how he felt all those years and why. It was a refreshing dynamic, but the years of hurt between them still needs to be addressed.

8 Bradley's Recovery From the Trauma

Bradley in a room being questioned in Belarus on the Morning Show.Image via Apple TV

Bradley went through an incredibly traumatic experience in Belarus. She wasn't physically harmed, but she was kept in a prison cell for over a month, where they never shut the lights off so she couldn't sleep. They played heavy metal music loudly for what appeared to be hours on end. They questioned her about who she was going to see, convinced she was a spy. Despite this, she refused to buckle.

When she was released and picked up by Alex, Bradley was clearly still out of sorts, as expected. Fans don't expect that she'll just go back to her regular life and job immediately, unaffected by this incident. It had to have done something to her, changed her. The gravity of what happened needs to be handled to demonstrate how such torture isn't easy to shake, nor ever leaves you.

9 Bradley and Cory's Relationship

Cory dipping Bradley while dancing in The Morning Show.Image via Apple TV

There was a short flashback sequence in the Season 4 finale showing Cory and Bradley bearing their souls to one another in bed, deciding to give the relationship a try. It was a memory of Cory's as he grappled with what to do with the information he had about the chemical plant cover-up. It's evident he still deeply loves Bradley, despite how upset he is with her at her betrayal in thinking that he could have had anything to do with it. But with Cory having delivered the information that saved Bradley from captivity in Belarus, and understanding the importance of the case and the position she was in at the time, there's potential for healing.

Fans want to see a face-to-face with them and learn if there's still a romantic connection there. While Bradley might not be ready to get into a serious relationship after everything she has been through, it's clear Cory still holds a torch for her.

10 The Paris Olympics Coverage

Mia in the dark looking up in The Morning Show.Image via Apple TV

The entire season led up to UBN's preparations for gaining the contract to be the sole American network to cover the Paris Olympics. Yet the Olympics hadn't started until the end of the season. In the final moments, Mia (Karen Pittman) and Ben (William Jackson Harper) were both prepping to get on a plane to head there for the opening ceremonies. They were going to be introducing their AI software there, the one Stella (Greta Lee) was working on before the massive blunder that led to her departure. Christine (Nicole Beharie) was to be heading up the on-location coverage. It was a big deal.

If Season 5 doesn't pick up in real-time, showcasing the Olympics, the storyline at least needs to address how it all went. Did things go off without a hitch? Who led the charge there with no one officially in charge? Based on Mia and Ben's exchange, the two will find themselves in a professional rivalry once again, both convinced they are up to the task, Mia clearly ready to take her boss energy to another level.

Like Follow Followed The Morning Show TV-MA Drama Release Date November 1, 2019 Showrunner Kerry Ehrin Directors Kerry Ehrin Writers Kerry Ehrin, Jay Carson

Cast

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• Marcia Gay Harden
• Holland Taylor

Genres Drama Main Genre Drama Seasons 4 Creator(s) Jay Carson, Kerry Ehrin Story By Kerry Ehrin Streaming Service(s) AppleTV+ Powered by Expand Collapse

• TV
• The Morning Show
• Jennifer Aniston

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