The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel has been a fan-favorite series since its premiere in 2017. The Emmy-winning show follows the story of Miriam “Midge” Maisel, a 1950s housewife who discovers a talent for stand-up comedy after her husband leaves her. The show has become known for its sharp writing, stunning period-specific costumes, and brilliant performances from its cast, which includes Rachel Brosnahan, Tony Shalhoub, and Alex Borstein.
The series finale, titled “Four Minutes,” premiered on December 17th, 2021, and saw Midge taking the biggest risk of her career in an effort to become the “Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” In the final episode, Midge gets the chance to appear on The Gordon Ford Show against Gordon Ford’s wishes. When Gordon’s wife, Hedy, forces the talk show host to put Midge on his show, he begrudgingly obliges and breaks his rule that employees can’t appear as guests on the show. But, instead of introducing her as a comic, he introduces her as the show’s “resident lady writer,” while the two sit on stools instead of the couch his guests usually sit on.
With four minutes left in the broadcast, Gordon cuts to commercial, much to Mike Carr’s dismay. The show’s executive producer encourages the host to fill the time somehow, and he insists he’ll just “vamp” for the final few minutes. Midge quickly pulls Susie aside and tells her that she’s thinking about doing something that could end up hurting both of their careers. “Something reckless that could go very badly for both of us. It could ruin us. Definitely me, but you by extension,” she tells her manager, before glancing at the mic standing on the stage.
“You started your career by standing on a stage that no one told you to get up on, saying a bunch of shit that no one wanted you to say. So, tits up,” Susie replies, with their signature salute for the last time on the series. With her manager’s encouragement, Midge tells Gordon she’s never been good at following rules before she takes the mic and gives an inspired four-minute set, with her parents Abe and Rose and ex-husband Joel in the audience, cheering her on.
Brosnahan says nobody could have ever seen the series ending the way that it did but, at the same time, she feels it’s the only way it could have ended. Though everyone was nervous to see how the cast and crew could “land this plane,” the actress explains she never had a doubt co-creators Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino would find the perfect way to say goodbye. “It felt like this particular set wrapped up so many of the different themes and ideas and questions that Midge has been grappling with throughout the course of the series,” Brosnahan tells The Hollywood Reporter of the four-minute set that launched Midge to superstardom. “What it means to be a woman; what it means to be a mother; what it means to have great ambition at a time when that was frowned upon, when it made you less attractive as she says; what it means to be bold and brave; what it means to be alone; and also what it means to have love and support.”
In a conversation with THR, Brosnahan opens up about The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel‘s legacy, Midge and Lenny Bruce’s final scene together, the cast and crew’s final day on set, and much more.
Brosnahan says that there were two scenes in the finale that have stayed with her the most since wrapping. The first is the “Tits Up” scene with Alex Borstein, who plays Midge’s manager, Susie. The moment felt like such a full-circle moment for the pair, and they both found themselves crying uncontrollably. The second scene was Midge sitting on Gordon’s couch, where he calls her the “Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” for the first time. That was the last scene they shot, and the moment is forever burned in Brosnahan’s brain.
The scene where Midge is sitting on Gordon’s couch was important for a number of reasons. Not only did it mark a major turning point in Midge’s career, but it also gave her the recognition she had been working so hard to achieve. To hear the words “the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” spoken out loud was a poignant moment for Brosnahan, who had embodied the character for six years.
Brosnahan says that one of the most satisfying aspects of the finale was seeing the growth in Midge’s relationships with her family. Throughout the series, her father, Abe, her mother, Rose, and her ex-husband, Joel, had all expressed reluctance to be the butt of Midge’s jokes. But in the finale, they all come together to support her in a way that felt both cathartic and emotionally satisfying.
All in all, the series finale of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel was a fitting end to a beloved show. Fans will undoubtedly miss Midge and her hilarious quips, but the legacy of the show will live on for years to come. As Brosnahan says, “It’s been such a wild ride, but a ride that I’m really grateful for and wouldn’t trade for anything.”
