‘Ted Lasso’ finale: Hannah Waddingham says Rebecca ‘gets what she deserves’ in Season 3 ending
The following post contains spoilers for the “Ted Lasso” Season 3 finale, “So Long, Farewell.”
If “Ted Lasso” has come to an end after three seasons, Emmy-winning star Hannah Waddingham is satisfied with how her character, AFC Richmond team owner Rebecca Welton, said goodbye to the Apple TV+ series.
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In the Season 3 finale, Richmond coach Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) decides to leave the team to move back home to Kansas to be with his son. Rebecca tries to convince Ted to stay to no avail, so instead does the next best thing: she keeps the team but sells 49 percent of the organization’s stock shares back to the loyal fans. It completes an arc for Rebecca that started in Episode 10, “International Break,” when the Richmond team owner admonished her fellow owners for valuing their greed over the sport’s spectators.
@tedlassolearnings This scene is so EPIC! ?? Rebecca’s Welton speech was so touching. Footbal isn’t just a game! #rebeccawelton footbalisn’tjustagame #viral #tiktok #fyp #tedlasso #nathanshelley #football #footballtogether #richmond #samobisanya #rupertmannion #passion #violin #internationalbreak #tedlassoseason3
? original sound – Ted Lasso Learnings – Ted Lasso Learnings
But that’s not all that happens for Rebecca in the season finale. In the closing moments, after Ted has gotten on a plane to fly back to Kansas, she runs into the mysterious man (Matteo van der Grijn) with whom she connected during the show’s visit to Amsterdam and his young daughter. The implication is that Rebecca, who also briefly earlier in the season explored the possibility of having a child, had found her family unit.
Speaking to Deadline in an interview published after Wednesday’s finale, Waddingham said Rebecca “gets what she deserves” in the episode. “Do we know if it’s for life? Who knows? None of us do. But I like the fact that the man that had made her feel sunshine again has walked back in and gone, ‘Hey,’” Waddingham said.
Of her character and her happy ending, Waddingham added, “She’s a very good egg, and I treated her with great love. She ended up with somebody who, whilst he absolutely adores her, couldn’t care less whether she’s a big, high-powered businesswoman or not. He just digs who she is.”
Waddingham started on “Ted Lasso” as an antagonist with a heart of gold – and that heart won out by the time the hit show’s first season came to a close. Waddingham has been praised for her performance on the series, winning Best Comedy Supporting Actress for Season 1 and returning as a nominee in the category for Season 2. She’s widely expected to land among the nominees once again this year and is a top contender to win.
Regardless of her ultimate awards fate, however, this could be the final time Waddingham plays Rebecca on “Ted Lasso.” While Apple never confirmed the third season would be the last for Emmy Award-winning comedy, the Season 3 finale certainly wrapped up the show as it was previously constructed. For starters, after Ted left AFC Richmond for good, Rebecca hired Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein) as head coach. In addition to selling 49 percent of the club, Rebecca also seemed very excited about a pitch from her longtime friend Keeley Jones (Juno Temple) for a women’s soccer team. A show about either scenario seems ripe for possibilities.
But whether this is the end is something Waddingham said she didn’t know. “I mean, I genuinely have no idea—none of us does,” she told Deadline when asked if this was the final season. “I think the only person that may be keeping it under his hat, and rightly so, is Jason. But we all certainly took it as the end of this three seasons’ story and just tried to honor it the best we could.”
All episodes of “Ted Lasso” are streaming on Apple TV+.
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