“Seinfeld” has long been considered to be one of the most impactful sitcoms ever made, but Jerry Seinfeld admitted the finale didn’t sit well with him.
The famous actor and comedian spoke with GQ during a recent interview and was frank about feeling unsatisfied by how the show wrapped up at the very end. He said that after an impressive nine-season run on television, and a slew of shared experiences between Jerry and characters Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), George (Jason Alexander) and Kramer (Michael Richards), the finale fell short. The group of friends closed off the show in a jail cell after being found guilty of unknowingly violating a local law in a small town. When asked if that final scene bothered him, Seinfeld replied, “a little bit, yeah.”
He has had several years to reflect on the last scene, and Seinfeld confessed he isn’t happy with it, but has also made peace with it at the same time.
“I don’t believe in regret,” he told GQ.
“I think it’s arrogant to think you could have done something different. You couldn’t,” he said, noting that it was a satisfactory ending at the time.
“That’s why you did what you did,” he said.
The cast from television’s popular “Seinfeld” comedy show are pictured in this undated file photo. Photo by FILES/AFP via Getty Images
Jerry Seinfeld performs onstage at the 2023 Good+Foundation “A Very Good+ Night of Comedy” Benefit at Carnegie Hall on October 18, 2023 in New York City. Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Good+Foundation
Seinfeld referenced the producers of the iconic show that reshaped pop culture and noted that they, too, felt the finale lacked in comparison to others.
“But me and Jeff Schaffer and Larry were standing around, talking about TV finales and which we thought were great. I feel Mad Men was the greatest. A lot of people like the Bob Newhart one. Mary Tyler Moore was okay,” Seinfeld told GQ.
Jerry Seinfeld attends the LA Tastemaker event for Comedians in Cars at The Paley Center for Media on July 17, 2019 in Beverly Hills City. Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Netflix
Jerry Seinfeld attends the “Colin Quinn: Red State Blue State” Opening Night at the Minetta Lane Theatre on January 22, 2019 in New York City. Photo by Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images
“I think Mad Men was the greatest final moment of a series I’ve ever seen. So satisfying. So funny,” Seinfeld said.
“And they said that they had sat and watched the Seinfeld finale, trying to figure out what went wrong. And it was obviously about the final scene, leaving them in the jail cell …” Seinfeld added.
