Abbott Elementary Season 5 premieres Oct 1 on ABC, streams on Hulu

Abbott Elementary returns to network television on Wednesday, October 1, as the comedy’s fifth season premieres at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time on ABC, with the episode becoming available to stream on Hulu the following day. The new season opens with the faculty preparing for a fresh school year that brings new faces and changes while continuing storylines left unresolved at the end of Season 4.

Season 4 left Willard R. Abbott Elementary in a turbulent place after a season-long plot involving outside interference and illicit payments tied to a nearby development. Several teachers accepted favors from a developer’s lawyer in exchange for keeping the project’s improprieties quiet. Principal Ava Coleman took responsibility for the scheme, was dismissed, and for a period Gregory Eddie stepped into the acting principal role. The school community rallied on Ava’s behalf, and she was reinstated late in the season after parents, staff and local businesses publicly supported her. The season concluded with a field trip to the Please Touch Museum that resolved multiple arcs and showcased the teachers’ bond with their students through a student-produced play satirizing faculty.