Will There Be A Season 4 Of A Series Of Unfortunate Events?

Millennials grew up reading Daniel Handler's Lemony Snicket's a Series of Unfortunate Events books, penned under the household pseudonym Lemony Snicket, which follows the Baudelaire children after their parents are tragically — and mysteriously — killed in a fire. The three kids are placed in the care of their distant "relative" Count Olaf, an aspiring actor determined to claim the family fortune for himself. Following Olaf's failed attempts, the Baudelaires are placed in the custody of a series of inept guardians as they try to elude Olaf and uncover the mystery behind a secret society from their parents' past. Lemony Snicket narrates the Baudelaires' adventures as they go.

Neil Patrick Harris stars in Netflix's series as Olaf, who sports a unibrow and a revealing tattoo resembling an eye. Patrick Warburton plays Snicket, the narrator tasked with explaining the events onscreen. The 13 A Series of Unfortunate Events books in total were released from 1999 to 2006, and Netflix adapted all storylines into three seasons under the same name. The adaptation has generally taken up four books in each season, and each book has been divided into two episodes — except for the final book, The End.

Netflix has meticulously stuck to Handler's order of the series of books, which is why it might seem impossible to bring the show back for an additional season. According to the order and the number of books in Handler's series, Netflix has already used up all the material. But let's take a closer look at the hit franchise's potential future, given the plethora of additional books published by the famed author.

Updated: November 4, 2022: If you love A Series of Unfortunate Events, you'll be happy to know we've updated this article with additional content and info.

Season 3 Marks The Netflix Series' End

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The first season of A Series of Unfortunate Events, which premiered on Netflix in January 2017, consists of eight episodes and adapted the first four books of the series. The second season was ordered in March 2017 and released in March 2018, consisting of ten episodes and adapting books five through nine. The third and final season, which was announced in April 2017 and released in January 2019, consists of seven episodes and adapts the remaining four books.

"What I love about our show, which isn't in the book, is how Lemony Snicket bookends the show," executive producer and showrunner Barry Sonnenfeld told EW. "He's in the first episode, and what he says at the very beginning, the very first lines of the first episode, we hear him say in the last episode. We now totally understand why he's been narrating the show, which is not in the last book. I find the fact that we bookend three seasons with Lemony Snicket incredibly emotional."

The latest season covers the final books in the series to offer a satisfying conclusion, but it also makes a strong case for a fourth season that could take the Series of Unfortunate Events story even further than the books did. Based on everything we saw in Season 3, there's clearly more story to tell. It was confirmed, however, that the show would end after the third season, as indicated on the show's official Twitter page. This surely disappointed many — that the series won't be coming back — but it was always the plan for the show to last three seasons. However, that doesn't mean that some of Lemony Snicket's other work couldn't now be adapted.

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Potential For A Series of Unfortunate Events Spin-off?

Paramount Television

Although many wondered if Netflix could continue A Series of Unfortunate Events by writing new seasons themselves, the truth is that the creators hadn't intended on deviating from the structure of the original book series. It's also worth noting that it's Paramount, not Netflix, that holds the production rights to the show.

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There are some books that Paramount and Netflix may choose to adapt, however. It'll also depend on whether Netflix thinks a prequel series or another adaptation could pull in the figures that the main series has. In Snicket's bibliography, there are multiple companion books that sit outside the main timeline. For example, The Unauthorized Autobiography (2002) takes a deep dive into the fictional life of Lemony Snicket and his eventful childhood, which involves his abduction. This storyline seems like it could have "A Netflix Original Film" written all over it.

Related: Dead to Me Gets New Trailer for Third and Final Season on Netflix

Other Works By "Lemony Snicket"

Paramount Television

Some of Snicket's other written works related to the A Series of Unfortunate Events universe could serve well as book-to-screen adaptations: The Dismal Dinner (2004), a short miniseries that takes place before the events of the first novel, The Bad Beginning. The Beatrice Letters (2006), a collection of fictional letters written between principal characters from the Series of Unfortunate Events books. Or All the Wrong Questions (2012 - 2015), a four-part series that serves as a prequel to the Series of Unfortunate Events books. It focuses on Snicket's apprenticeship as he investigates crimes involving his chaperone in a town called Stain'd-by-the-Sea.