Hello, you.
Netflix’s hit YOU is coming back for its fifth and final season. Here’s everything we know so far about our last date with Joe.
YOU was renewed for Season 5 immediately following the release of Season 4 last spring. The Netflix show has been a consistent success for the streaming platform since it migrated from Lifetime in 2018.
Executive producers Sarah Schechter and Greg Berlanti say they always meant for YOU to end after five seasons.
We can’t wait to see what they have in store for us.
YOU Season 5 Release Date
Though the exact release date is still a mystery, Season 5 of YOU is expected to premiere in 2024 on Netflix.
Possible delays could push the release back to early 2025.
There hasn’t been any news, which has us a bit worried, but as you can imagine, the suspense is killing us!
YOU Season 5 Episodes
They haven’t released the episode count yet, but we can surmise what’s to come based on what we’ve seen so far
If history is any indication, Season 5 of YOU will contain 10 episodes.
Whether or not this season will be split into two parts, like Season 4, is up in the air.
This is a big show for Netflix, so they may want to break it up to get more bang for their buck. It’s as close to episodic drops as we’re likely to get from the streamer.
YOU Season 5 Trailer
Netflix hasn’t dropped a trailer for Season 5 yet, but star Penn Badgley recently released a teaser video to announce the new season.
In the video, he hints at the return of a character from Joe’s past.
We then see images of several of Joe’s old friends and enemies, like former love Marienne, nemesis Dr. Nicky, and friends Ellie and the Conrads (more on this later).
How Will Joe’s Story End?
YOU is based on the novels by Caroline Kepnes. In the series, protagonist Joe Goldberg works in a New York City bookstore and romanticizes his life — to a dangerous degree.
In his quest to find “the One,” Joe meets and stalks women, learning everything he can to make them fall in love with him. When things don’t go his way, he turns to murder to dispose of anyone he sees as a threat.
His murderous impulses upend his love life time and time again. On YOU Season 1, he falls for, then kills, the enigmatic Guinevere Beck, blaming her death on her therapist.
YOU Season 2 sees Joe finding love again, literally. His new flame, Love Quinn, seems like a match for him. She survives Season 2 (though many others aren’t so lucky) before meeting her end in the finale of Season 3.
How Did YOU Season 4 End?
The season opened with Joe tracking down Marienne, his latest romance, after she fled to London. Uncharacteristically, he chose to let her go and took a job as an English professor under the moniker Jonathan Moore.
Of course, Joe couldn’t leave well enough alone. Despite his attempts to be the good guy he wanted to be, Joe found himself once again involved in a murder. Only this time, he didn’t do it.
Or, at least, he didn’t remember doing it.
Joe spends YOU Season 4 watching his friends fall dead around him and trying to catch the killer.
On the exciting conclusion of the season, we watch as Joe learns he wasn’t as innocent as he thought.
With his world crashing down around him, Joe flees to New York with his newest love, wealthy heiress Kate.
With Kate’s help, he hopes to paint himself as the sympathetic victim of the ruthless Love Quinn and move on with his life.
YOU Season 5 Plot
Netflix is tight-lipped about the plot of Season 5 for now, but we do know we can expect a gripping finale for Joe Goldberg.
Following the aftermath of YOU Season 4, Season 5 brings us full circle to the beginning — New York City.
Where will we go from here? Speculation suggests that Joe will finally pay for his crimes with jail time or his life.
Or maybe, backed by Kate’s wealth and his own cunning, Joe will come out victorious. But will he curb his killer ways? We’ll have to watch and find out.
YOU Season 5 Cast
Currently, only two actors are confirmed to return for Season 5. Penn Badgley will return as Joe Goldberg, and Charlotte Ritchie will reprise her role as Kate.
However, with rumors (fueled by Badgley himself) swirling of possible returning characters, which familiar faces will we see in Season 5? There are so many great friends — and enemies — to choose from.
Dr. Nicky, played by John Stamos, is a likely contender. He’s an NYC native, so it makes sense that we’d see him again upon Joe’s return to the Big Apple.
Falsely imprisoned for the murder of Beck in Season 1, Dr. Nicky has a serious bone to pick with Joe.
Before she shot to household-name status as Wednesday Addams, Jenna Ortega was fan-favorite Ellie, the orphan Joe befriended in Season 2.
She brought out a softer side in Joe and would be a great addition to Season 5.
Since we never learned her fate, that’s one loose end we’d like tied up.
What about the Conrads, Love’s bougie, and bizarre friends from Season 3? They know too much and could be counted on to serve justice to Joe in the final season.
YOU Season 5 Cast Additions
Don’t be shocked, but we haven’t heard anything yet about new characters joining the final season.
This is a show that thrives on surprises, so the fewer teases we get in that regard, the better.
Where Can I Watch YOU?
Although the first two seasons didn’t air on Netflix, it’s a Netflix series through and through now. You can watch all past episodes on the streamer, and that’s where you’ll find Season 5, too.
That’s everything we know about everyone’s favorite charismatic killer so far.
For now, we’ll be on the lookout for any updates about Joe’s final chapter, and we’ll keep you posted.
Until then, we’ll see you around.
Shela Ward is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. You can follow her on X.
