Ted Lasso team hoped Anthony Head would return for Season 4 finale

The team behind Ted Lasso held onto hope that Anthony Head would return as Rupert Mannion for the Season 4 finale.

Brendan Hunt, the show’s co-creator and star, said the writers had what he called an outside hope of bringing Head back to close out the story. Hunt, who co-wrote the finale with Jason Sudeikis, discussed the plan in an interview about the final episode, according to Deadline.

It did not happen. Head died on June 1 at age 72 from complications of pneumonia. Season 4 had already wrapped production before his death.

The season still kept Rupert in the story. His name came up a few times across the run, and Episode 409 ended with an “In Memoriam” card for Head, the brief on-screen tribute shown after an episode in memory of someone who has died.

Rupert was the show’s long-running antagonist. He is the ex-husband of Richmond owner Rebecca and a former club power player. In earlier seasons, coach Nate, played by Nick Mohammed, left Richmond to work for Rupert at West Ham United, according to Apple.

Season 4 wrote around Head’s absence with a boardroom mystery. In Episode 8, Rupert was suspected of secretly buying AFC Richmond shares to take control back from Rebecca. In Episode 9, the buyer was revealed as Zelda, the backer of the Richmond women’s team, not Rupert.

Hunt returned for Season 4 as Coach Beard, Ted’s right-hand man, according to People. Hunt is also a co-creator and executive producer on the series, a role noted by The Hollywood Reporter. The Season 4 finale is titled “Being Alive,” according to Deadline.

Head was a former regular on Ted Lasso and a familiar face to television viewers. He played Rupert Giles, the school librarian who acts as mentor to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, as listed by Apple TV.

For fans, this means Rupert’s story ends off screen. The character is cleared, the club moves on, and the farewell to the actor sits apart from the plot.