Transparent to kill off Jeffrey Tambor's character in its musical final episode

Actor Jeffrey Tambor
(Image credit: Lisa O'Connor/Getty Images)

Another show is killing off its main character after the lead actor became embroiled in scandal.

Amazon's Transparent will kill off Jeffrey Tambor's Maura Pfefferman in its upcoming final episode, creator Jill Soloway confirmed to The Los Angeles Times on Thursday.

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A normal fifth season of Transparent was originally expected, but it was delayed after Tambor's departure. Nearly two years later, the show will return this fall with a feature-length musical episode, which Amazon said "begins with the passing of Maura" and will "follow the Pfefferman family as they come together in their grief and celebrate her life." It will air in the fall.

Tambor said last year he was "profoundly disappointed in Amazon's handling of these false accusations against me." Although he was fired from Transparent, he was not removed from Netflix's Arrested Development, which debuted its most recent batch of episodes in March.

Transparent's finale is the latest instance of a series killing off a lead character after its star was accused of sexual misconduct. Netflix's House of Cards killed Kevin Spacey's character last fall and centered the final season around Robin Wright's Claire Underwood instead. Likewise, ABC continued Roseanne as the spin-off The Conners, killing off Roseanne Barr's character after firing her over a racist tweet.

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.