Tina Fey’s ‘The Four Seasons’ Brings Heartfelt Drama to Netflix

New York – When you think of quintessential preteen movies, a cozy marriage dramedy starring Alan Alda and Carol Burnett might not immediately come to mind. Yet, for a young Tina Fey, The Four Seasons was a formative touchstone, offering a glimpse into the complexities of adult relationships.

Reflecting on the film, Fey, now 54, shared, “I was like, they’re married? It was basically my version of ‘Twilight’ fan fiction.” She added, “At that time, there was something about it that defined for me, ‘Oh, that’s what grownup life should and will be like: caring, intelligent people who wear sweaters and walk around in the fall.’”

Fey has now reimagined the 1981 film as a Netflix series, streaming since May 1. The eight-episode dramedy, co-created with Lang Fisher (Never Have I Ever) and Tracey Wigfield (Great News), follows three sets of couples—Kate (Fey) and Jack (Will Forte), Nick (Steve Carell) and Anne (Kerri Kenney-Silver), and Danny (Colman Domingo) and Claude (Marco Calvani)—as they navigate the challenges of life, love, and friendship over the course of a year, with each episode representing a different season.

The series marks a tonal shift for Fey, known for her sharp wit and satirical humor in projects like 30 Rock and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. In The Four Seasons, she embraces a more grounded and tender portrayal, focusing on the emotional lives of her characters. “It was like, ‘OK, so we’re not going to end this on a joke? These people are just going to have their feelings and the scene’s going to end?’” Fey quipped. “But people seem to appreciate it. Sometimes, when there’s 10,000 jokes, it can inhibit you from actually caring about the story.”

Erika Henningsen, 32, reunites with Fey after their time together in Broadway’s Mean Girls and Peacock’s Girls5Eva. Henningsen plays Ginny, a younger woman whom Nick dates after his divorce from Anne. Initially seen as the “other woman,” Ginny proves to be patient, empathetic, and right for Nick at that stage in his life. “She’s a disruption to the friend group, but not an antagonist,” Henningsen explained. “The goal is that you walk away loving both these women.”

The series delves into themes of friendship, love, and the complexities of long-term relationships. Fey noted that many of the writers had known each other for decades, allowing them to draw from personal experiences to create authentic narratives. “Many of us in the writers’ room have known each other for 20 years, so everyone was very generous about sharing specifics of their relationships,” Fey shared.

Filming the series proved cathartic for Fey, who completed the project shortly after the passing of her mother, Jeanne, and her daughter Alice’s departure for college. “It definitely kept me in the world, because I could have easily kept more and more in my house,” Fey said. “There are certainly themes and topics in this that were a little close to the bone, and it has been good for me to reenter the world.”

The series also resonated with Henningsen, who married her Mean Girls co-star Kyle Selig in 2023. During filming, she observed the cast’s ability to balance successful careers with strong family lives. “I was working with people who are doing it the way I want to do it,” Henningsen reflected.

Fey and Henningsen first met in 2017 during auditions for the Mean Girls musical, where Henningsen played the brainy new kid, Cady Heron. Fey recalled, “She has this intelligent, wholesome quality to her,” which made her a perfect fit for the role of Ginny.

As Fey continues to build her creative universe, Henningsen expressed gratitude for being part of it. “I feel lucky to be one of those people in the Tina Fey ‘Avengers Assemble’ Universe,” she said. “The world is burning – let’s have a good time.”

The Four Seasons is now streaming on Netflix.