The fourth season of Silicon Valley will be the last to feature self-involved angel investor Erlich Bachman. According to The Hollywood Reporter, actor T.J. Miller (who has played Bachman since season 1) will not return for the sitcom’s fifth season, which was just officially picked up by HBO on Thursday.
“The producers of Silicon Valley and T.J. Miller have mutually agreed that T.J. will not return for season 5,” said HBO. “In Erlich Bachman, T.J. has brought to life an unforgettable character, and while his presence on the show will be missed, we appreciate his contribution and look forward to future collaborations.”
As The Hollywood Reporter notes, Miller’s career has picked up considerably since Silicon Valley debuted in 2014, both on TV and in film. He played major roles in both Office Christmas Party and Deadpool in 2016, the latter of which he is expected to return to for the sequel in 2018. He also launched The Gorburger Show on Comedy Central and guest starred in a few episodes of Pete Holmes’ Crashing.
At the moment, Miller is on the road promoting The Emoji Movie, in which he will play the main character, Gene. His busy schedule certainly appears to have contributed to this mutual decision by HBO and Miller. Thankfully for fans of the show, Miller appears to be the only major departure.
The report claims that the rest of the cast — Thomas Middleditch, Zach Woods, Kumail Nanjiani, Martin Starr, Josh Brener, Amanda Crew, Matt Ross, Jimmy O. Yang and Suzanne Cryer — are all expected to return for season 5.
