Mad Men's fifth season is almost a done deal, but you probably won't see it for a while

AMC and Lionsgate are reportedly close to finalizing a deal with Matthew Weiner to bring Mad Men back for a fifth season, a negotiation that’s been drawn out for several months as Weiner demands more money, perhaps by casually plopping an Emmy on the table every time there’s a moment of awkward silence. The news isn’t a surprise—both AMC reps and Weiner himself have been promising that the show would return, even when there was no agreement in sight—but the delay in getting it done obviously means that Mad Men most likely won’t hit its usual summertime premiere date. At this point, it could be as late as fall or beyond before we find out which beloved characters died in that massive bank vault explosion. That’s what happened, right? It’s been a while.