Ellen Barkin Addresses ‘Animal Kingdom’ Exit And Penultimate Episode Shocker

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SPOILER ALERT: This article includes details about Wednesday night’s episode of Animal Kingdom.

Fans of TNT’s Animal Kingdom were shocked Wednesday when they saw Ellen Barkin’s Janine “Smurf” Cody meet her maker in the night’s episode. After four seasons, the matriarch of the Cody crime family died and fans took to social media to show their displeasure — and Barkin reacted

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After the penultimate season 4 aired, the official Animal Kingdom Twitter account tweeted: “Rest in Peace, our Queen. Tell us your favorite Smurf moments from #AnimalKingdom below.”

Many fans bid farewell while Barkin cheekily tweeted “Next episode Smurf’s will is opened. She left her boys a hit tv show.” She added, “Carry on Codys…well, maybe not all Codys.”

She sent off her tweet after liking some tweets that weren’t too happy about EP John Wells’ decision to write off Barkin — who is the lead of the show. Wells told TVLine that writing her off the show was “creatively motivated” — but loyal Animal Kingdom fans have different opinions.

“Your writers made a huge mistake you’re gonna see ratings drop” tweeted a fan. Another bluntly took a shot at the show’s EP. “John Wells is lying to the audience just tell us the truth why Ellen Barkin was let go. Barkin is an incredible actress and the star of the show. Killing the star of a series will seal the fate. It will probably get cancelled next season. Ellen deserved so much better than this.”

Based on the David Michod 2010 Australian film, the TNT drama’s fanbase has grown since its debut in 2016. Its viewership has ballooned to nearly 18M for its fourth season across all platforms. The broadcaster said that the series is one of this year’s top ten cable dramas for viewers aged 18 to 49 in L+7 data. Animal Kingdom was recently renewed for a fifth season.

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