‘The Conners’ Season 5 Finale: The Family Makes Up for Missed Milestones as EPs Prep for Possible Series End (Exclusive Video)

thewrap.com:

is always there for him – Ben. As the episode continues, members of the family lament their own disappointments of that one important day years – and in some cases, decades – earlier.

Co-executive producer Bruce Helford tells TheWrap what they wanted to leave the audience to think about through the summer regarding the Conner family’s future.“With Darlene, Mark and Ben (and actually the whole family), we wanted to highlight the real difficulties for working-class families trying to get a son or daughter into college.

Also, we developed the path for Becky to become a more mature person, looking to make different choices now that she’s in her late forties, going to college and raising a child.

That led us to her meeting Sean Astin,” Helford said. “Those stories, plus the evolution of the relationships between Jackie and Neville and Dan and Louise, Jackie becoming more empowered in her life and dealing with her mom’s dementia, Dan trying to keep the family close as it starts to spread out — all of that should get the audience’s imagination going about what’s to come.”“Darlene’s determination to get Mark to college in a way they can afford has been an arc running through Season 5, starting even earlier than that,” co-executive producer Dave Caplan added. “At the end of Season 5, she sacrifices her own future and job satisfaction to make Mark’s dream a reality, but the audience is left to ponder how, and if, she’ll be able to adjust.”Helford told TVLine that next season could be the show’s last. “I would not [say that] definitively because the numbers were so good this season, and we’ve all had a really great time… but it’s definitely a possibility,” he said.