‘Transparent’ will End After its Upcoming 5th Season

May 9, 2018 JTA

Jeffrey Tambor, right, with Judith Light in the second season of “Transparent.” (Courtesy of Amazon Studios)

(JTA) — “Transparent,” the Amazon Studios TV series about the Jewish transgender matriarch of a Los Angeles family, will end after its upcoming fifth season.

Actor Jeffrey Tambor, who plays the lead role of Maura Pfefferman, was fired from the series in February, following an investigation into allegations that he sexually harassed two women associated with the production. In November, Trace Lysette, who plays a recurring character on the series, and Van Barnes, Tambor’s former assistant, accused him of sexual misconduct.

Creator Jill Soloway announced the show’s finale in a story about the allegations against Tambor in the Hollywood Reporter Monday.

Tambor has denied the allegations. In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, his first since the allegations came to light, the Jewish actor said: “Lines got blurred.”

He continued: “I was difficult, I was mean….I was rude to my assistant. I was moody. Sometimes I didn’t talk at all.”

He said of Barnes’ allegations: “I dispute her account. I did raise my voice at times, I was moody at times, there were times when I was tactless. But as for the other stuff, absolutely not.”

“Transparent” has been a major success for Amazon, which released the show on its streaming service, garnering multiple Emmy Awards, including one for Tambor as outstanding lead actor in 2016. It is scheduled to start its final season on May 29.

Jewish themes and characters abound in the show, whose characters include a rabbi and Jewish refugees from Eastern Europe and whose episodes have been set in Israel and at various Los Angeles Jewish landmarks.