Ted Lasso is losing Mae Green, and Annette Badland is doing everything she can to make sure Mae’s spirit stays alive.
In the show’s ninth episode of Season 4, “Mae Rides the Bus,” the beloved pub owner joined AFC Richmond’s women’s team on the road, delivered a rousing pregame speech, and celebrated wildly in the stands. Then the Lady Greyhounds won big, and the episode ended in tragedy. After Rebecca broke the news to Ted, the show cut to a tribute card honoring Anthony Head, who played Rupert Manion.
Badland spoke to DECIDER ahead of Episode 10, and she made one thing clear: she wants Mae to come back.
How Jason Told Her the News
Badland found out about Mae’s fate the old-fashioned way — face to face. Jason Sudeikis came to her dressing room.
“He came to my dressing room,” Badland recalled. “The kids were in the foyer, and I came through, and Chip said, ‘Oh, Jason wants to see you.’ And I said, ‘Oh, I’ll go to his trailer.’ And he said, ‘No, no, he’ll come to your room,’ which I thought was a bit odd. And I joked with the kids and said, ‘Oh, Jason wants to come to my room! You might not see me again!'”
She laughed about it at the time. But then Sudeikis told her the whole story, episode by episode, until he reached the ending. “And she passes,” Badland remembered. “And you kind of go, ‘Oh.'”
“I’m all for it.”
The conversation afterward was productive. Badland gave Sudeikis a few ideas that changed Episode 10, though she couldn’t reveal what they were. She also mentioned a film called It’s a Wonderful Life, where an angel keeps popping back. The idea of Mae returning as a conscience is one she supports.
The Last Day on Set
The final day was emotional, but not without its awkward moments. Badland said there were times she was called for scenes involving her death that she would have preferred to avoid.
“It was very strange to have the people at the studio responding to me once they found out that I wasn’t going to be around again,” she said. “Again, I can’t reveal too much, but it was very strange.”
Her fellow cast members were equally blindsided. Tanya Reynolds and Abbie Hern told Badland they didn’t believe the news when they heard it. They thought it was a joke.
Why Mae’s Women’s Team Scenes Mattered
The episode gave Mae a chance to live out her long-lost dream of becoming a footballer. Badland called the scenes “tremendous.”
“I support women’s football, and I’m thrilled that the guys do,” she said. “And Mae came from a time when she couldn’t play, and that happened to a lot of women. And the girls are just fabulous. They’re effervescent and alive, so they’re great to play with.”
The scenes were immediate and lively, she said. Playing with the kids brought out the best in everyone involved.
Remembering Anthony Head
The tribute card to Anthony Head was a surprise for Badland. She hadn’t known he was ill, so she had wondered why he wasn’t in the series.
“He’s funny, bright, inclusive, generous,” she said. “The humor. The wry humor. And a very beautiful man. I didn’t know he was ill, so I had wondered why he wasn’t in the series. I was very sad when I heard he died.”
She was proud to be in his episode.
Four Seasons of Feistiness
Badland said the thing she loved most about playing Mae was the freedom to be rude on television.
“Given license,” she said. “Yeah, given license. I think that she doesn’t give in. I respect Mae enormously. I think she’s probably been there, done it, had a difficult time, got through. She sees a bit like Ted; she does see what people are, really.”
One standout moment was the scene with Juno, where Mae understood what was going on inside someone else. Badland relished bringing that out in an older woman who was still alive and still relishing the world.
Fans also loved Mae’s All the President’s Men scenes with Higgins in Episode 8, especially the Kool-Aid man line. Badland said that line wasn’t in the script when they started filming. The guys came up with it in the middle, and they weren’t sure if it could go in.
“When we started filming it, that wasn’t in it,” she said. “And the guys came up with that in the middle and said, ‘I don’t know if it can go in or not!'”
What Mae’s Death Means for Zelda
Mae told Higgins to follow the anger. Badland thinks she knew Zelda was the one behind the shares.
“Yes,” she said.
Now that Mae is gone, the question of her shares looms over the finale. Mae said she would never sell her shares. Badland wouldn’t commit to what happens next, but she acknowledged the stakes.
“Oh, well…” she trailed off, laughing.
A Farewell With a Promise
Badland’s account of her farewell with Sudeikis shows a performer who cared deeply about the part. The jokes about her death, the promise of a possible return, and the respect she showed for the storytelling — it all adds up to someone who clearly loved playing Mae.
The episode was devastating, and Badland knows it. But she also knows that the spirit of Mae lives on.
“I must listen to Mae, because I’m not like Mae,” she told DECIDER. “That was a gift, to be able to indulge in that, to explore it, to live it while we were working. So to shape up and do as she would do, rather than being a little afraid person in the corner of the room.”
For fans of Ted Lasso, that’s a comfort. Mae may be gone, but she left her mark, and Badland has vowed to keep her spirit alive.
Whether she returns as a conscience or not, Badland’s idea is on the table.
Source material: “‘Ted Lasso’s Annette Badland Reflects On Mae’s “Tremendous” Journey And Unpacks Season 4, Episode 9’s Devastating Ending,” Decider.
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