Foundation renewed for season 4 as finale draws season 3 to a close

Apple TV+ wasted no time announcing Foundation renewed for a season 4, even as most of us were yet to watch the grand finale of season 3. Here’s what they had to say.

the hit, Rotten Tomatoes Certified Fresh sci-fi epic has been renewed for a fourth season, with production set to begin in early 2026. Based on Isaac Asimov’s award-winning stories and produced by Paramount Television Studios, the third season of Foundation has drawn praise from critics and audiences around the world from week to week, and has been celebrated as “the gold standard for all science fiction programming.”

While we might find the language a little florid, we have to agree season 3 was rather good.

What was season 3 about and what does it tell us about season 4?

Again we quote:

The Foundation has become increasingly established far beyond its humble beginnings while the Cleonic Dynasty’s Empire has dwindled. As both of these galactic powers forge an uneasy alliance, a threat to the entire galaxy appears in the fearsome form of a warlord known as “The Mule,” whose sights are set on ruling the universe by use of physical and military force, as well as mind control. It’s anyone’s guess who will win, who will lose, who will live and who will die as Hari Seldon, Gaal Dornick, the Cleons and Demerzel play a potentially deadly game of intergalactic chess.

In this week’s finale episode, “The Darkness,” Gaal and the Second Foundation take the flight to the Mule as the Emperor’s legacy suffers a catastrophic blow.

We’d certainly say there were catastrophes a-plenty, many changes to the core character and some large elements from later books in Asimov’s series foreshadowed. Hopefully it will arrive later in 2026. As ever, we’ll keep you posted. Meantime, why not check out our 5* review?