Showtime’s Shameless will finalize the Chicago-based Gallagher stories with the upcoming Season 11, quite like the U.K. version of the show. With Emmy Rossum’s Fiona departing over a year ago, and the rest of the siblings starting to grow their own families, the time feels right to let them all venture off in their own directions (though I’m still sort-of rooting for a certain character to win a spinoff). Season 11 will premiere on December 9, and here’s where things left off in January:
– Gallovich officially happened with Ian and Mickey finally tying the knot despite plenty of misgivings on both ends. They were terrible cellmates in prison, so will they fare any better with a little more breathing room (and a bathroom with a closing door)?
– Lip fell off the wagon in a big way at the wedding ceremony, which became a funeral for his sobriety Tami’s verbal barbs arguably went too far. Watching him down stiff drink after stiff drink was heartbreaking, and I hope the show brings him back from this cliff. Things are never as real for anyone else on Shameless than they’ve been for Lip.
– Debbie’s on the run from the law after Julia’s mom reported Debbie for statutory rape. According to series creator John Wells, she’ll be required to register as a sex offender, which will complicate things at home, to say the very least.
Heading into Season 11, the show did rewrites before heading back to the set, and Shameless will integrate the pandemic into its various arcs. Here’s Showtime’s synopsis:
The final season of Shameless finds the Gallagher family and the South Side at a crossroads, with changes caused by the COVID pandemic, gentrification and aging to reconcile. As Frank confronts his own mortality and family ties in his alcoholic and drug induced twilight years, Lip struggles with the prospect of becoming the family’s new patriarch. Newlyweds Ian and Mickey are figuring out the rules and responsibilities of being in a committed relationship while Deb embraces her individuality and single motherhood. Carl finds an unlikely new career in law enforcement and Kevin and V struggle to decide whether a hard life on the South Side is worth fighting for.
Noel Fisher, who plays Mickey, has shared some masked set photos.
Well, Shameless has always been a relatable show, which is why it’s so beloved, so it does makes sense for them to confront COVID head on. Granted, I wouldn’t have minded watching the Gallaghers exist in a world where viruses don’t exist, but the show was one of the first to return to production during our current situation, so yes, they’re gonna do this thing. And is Carl really gonna become a cop? Oh boy.
Shameless will return on December 9.