‘Grace and Frankie’ Season 7 Netflix: Filming Begins & What We Know So Far

Grace and Frankie's 7th season has started filming, after a long delay due to the global healthcare crisis. Here’s an updated July 2021 guide to everything we know so far about Grace and Frankie season 7 which will be the series last.

After 7 seasons and 94 episodes, the longest-running Netflix series will be ending. It’s no surprise it’s been one of Netflix’s longest-running shows with Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin fronting and being created by NBC’s Friends showrunner (no longer on Netflix in the US) Marta Kauffman.

Season 6 of Grace and Frankie was made available on Netflix as of January 15th, 2020 globally and originally, we figured the final season would hit in January 2021 but as you’ve probably figured out, the series was delayed.

Season 7 will wrap up the story and could see the return of season 1. However, season 1 may still be in effect. The four main characters might end up sharing a roof. For now, however, season 7's story is kept secret.

Let’s now run through what we do know:

What makes season 7 of Grace & Frankie so special?

We were informed by a series of tweets, on September 4, 2019, that Grace and Frankie had been renewed before the January 2020 release of season 6. Official Twitter confirmed that season 7 was a success, but added that it will be the final.

In the announcement here’s what Lily and Jane both had to say on the show closing out:

“We’re so grateful that our show has been able to deal with issues that have really connected to our grand generation. And their kids, and amazingly, their kids as well! We’ll miss these two old gals, Grace and Frankie, as much as many of their fans will, but we’ll still be around.”

Marta Kauffman, Howard J. Morris and the hosts of the program said:

“It’s thrilling and somehow fitting, that our show about the challenges, as well as the beauty and dignity of aging, will be the oldest show on Netflix.”

Officially, we don’t know why Netflix has chosen season 7 to be the final season, but it’s likely due to the showrunners naturally wanting to conclude the show.

It doesn’t, however, meet the older more traditional goal for shows reaching 100 episodes which has been advantageous in the past but seemingly made less relevant in the age of streaming.

According to Rolling Stone, Marta Kauffman has several projects under her belt post Grace and Frankie. This includes a TNT pilot and a screenplay that is based on We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves.

Is Grace and Frankie Season 7 still in production?

Current Production Status: Filming at June 2021

Grace and Frankie started production shortly after the premiere of season 6 on Netflix. Filming began for the seventh season on January 27, 2020.

In March 2020, however, the show’s production was shut down alongside other Netflix productions such as Russian Doll season 2 (among countless others) as the global pandemic took its toll on productions. This made January 2021's release impossible.

To continue production preparations for the inevitable, Grace and Frankie hosted a live streaming table read in April 2020. This table reading was in support of Meals on Wheels.

Some feared the show would go the same way as GLOW, and never return. Thankfully, that turned out not to be the case when Jane Fonda posted on her blog about her plans for the holiday season which included a snippet of information regarding the show’s future.

We reported that production would resume in June 2021, as we previously stated. Jane Fonda said on the delay: “A long time to wait but, given the age and vulnerability of the 4 leads, it’s best. I’ll be headed into 84 by the time we’re done. Yikes!”

The filming is continuing in Los Angeles and will end by October 2021.

Jane Fonda, confirmed on June 20th that filming will resume from June 21st. Fonda said on the occasion “I’ve enjoyed having to learn my lines for my scenes tomorrow and Tuesday.”

A week or so later, another post came from Fonda saying “I can still act!”. In the post, Fonda said “Frankly, I’ve been worrying about the possibility that in the 15 months since we were last filming “Grace & Frankie,” I may have lost the ability to act.” However, she then continued:

“But last Monday we went back to the set and, turns out, I can still do it and I’m happy doing it. Some of our crew is new but most of the main people are from before COVID and it was really sweet to see them. Our Unit manager and producers have a knack for hiring nice and diverse people, so the set has always been chill. Actually, sometimes way too hot or too cold but always chill…if you get my meaning.”

Season 7 will feature an extended final season for Grace and Frankie

That’s right, all previous seasons of Grace and Frankie have had 13 episodes each. That will not be the case for season 7 as it’s been confirmed that season 7 will 16 episodes, which as we mentioned above, brings the total episode count of the show to 94.

Is Dolly Parton going to Grace and Frankie season 7?

Dolly has never been mentioned in Grace or Frankie, despite rumors.

Dolly Parton revealed this possibility in a Lorraine interview in the United Kingdom in February 2021. Dolly Parton is currently working on several Netflix projects.

In the interview, Parton said: “We worked so well together on 9 to 5, it’s a crazy wonderful show.” adding

Lily Tomlin has also strongly hinted at Parton’s appearance at some point saying: “We’ve got a great role for her this time. It is something I believe she will do. I’m just hoping she will”.

What date will Grace and Frankie's 7th season air on Netflix?

Netflix has released Seasons 4, 5, and 6 in the first month.

That’s why we were originally predicting that season 7 of Grace and Frankie will be on Netflix in January 2021.

With production picking back up in summer 2021 (and some filming already concluded) it’s possible we could see the show return to its regular January spot meaning January 2022.

We’ll keep you updated as and when we learn more.

All you need to know regarding season 7 of Grace & Frankie

• Grace and Frankie is the longest-running show in Netflix’s history and will remain that way for some time given The Ranch is also due to end after part 8.
• Jane Fonda was a frequent media presence over the last year, mainly because of her work in climate activism. She’s been organizing many protests in Washington DC.
• In an interview with the LA Time, Kauffmann teased the next season saying: “I can’t say too much, but we’re going to be dealing with Robert, Sol, Grace, and Frankie in a way in that we haven’t seen before,”
• Thanks to IMDb, it’s been confirmed that Michael Charles Roman who plays that role of Adam will be back in season 7.
• Nick, longtime fan favourite has been confirmed as returning to the show for its seventh season. He’ll be appearing in episode 2.

That’s all we have, for now, we’ll keep you posted on all things Grace and Frankie season 7 as we learn more.