5 ways Superstore could write out Amy for America Ferrera’s farewell

How will Superstore say goodbye to America Ferrera and write Amy out of her Cloud 9 family? Here are five options for the star’s impending exit.

After celebrating Superstore’s sixth-season renewal, fans were immediately hit with an unforeseen twist: leading star and producer America Ferrera would leave the hit NBC comedy after the current fifth season. But now that the global health crisis has capped production on the sitcom one episode shy of completing Season 5 and thus filming Ferrera’s farewell, our goodbye with Amy has been postponed. How will Cloud 9 see off its manager and moral center?

As with any television character exit, though some are better than others, Superstore could go any number of ways with Ferrera’s departure. Obviously, fans will expect Amy to accept a job position higher up the corporate ladder, but just how will the workplace comedy handle that move? And what would Amy’s potential new job and relocation mean for our hopes and dreams for her and Jonah? We’re spelling it all out with five bold options for Amy and America’s farewell.

1. Moving up at corporate out of state

The most obvious way Superstore could write out Amy would be to follow her natural career trajectory. She’s been moving up the corporate ladder since taking over Glenn’s role as store manager and has, at times, shown her desire to continue to move up to be a little selfish. Sometimes she puts her work above her relationships, especially with Jonah, and it wouldn’t be out of character to accept a higher-up position that would move her family out of state.

2. Moving up at corporate off camera

Of course, there’s always the option that Amy moves up to a position that’s merely out of the store but not out of state, which takes Amy off camera but not out of the Cloud 9 universe. While America Ferrera would no longer need to appear on camera, Amy could still exist and be spoken about as an unseen character, like Stan on Will & Grace and Maris on Frasier. Doing something unconventional with a character exit wouldn’t be uncharacteristic for the quirky workplace sitcom.

3. A really long business trip

Taking the concept of an unconventional character exit and really running with it, Superstore could also send Amy off on a business trip or training for a new position that’s just very, abnormally long. She’ll reassure the team that it’s just a business trip and she won’t be gone forever, but they’d still react as if she was permanently leaving the store—because for all intents and purposes she would be. Like the previous option, it would leave the door open for America Ferrera to reappear in the series finale and give a fitting ending to Amy and Jonah’s relationship.

4. Leaving Jonah heartbroken

However, if the series opts for the first option, taking Amy and her family out of state, there’s no way that Amy and Jonah would attempt a long-distance relationship. Right? On top of relocating her life and children, and starting a new job, there doesn’t seem like much room to make a romance last on FaceTime. Realistically, Jonah will have his heart broken. But let’s hope this option isn’t the one Superstore lands on, because we don’t want to see Amy off with disappointment.

5. Leaving the relationship open-ended

No matter how the series decides to bid farewell to America Ferrera and her lead character Amy, the biggest question surrounding the exit will be “What happens to Amy and Jonah?” Whether they’re mutually heartbroken, give long-distance a shot, or don’t have to break-up at all, long-time shippers will want (demand?) a satisfying resolution, and we’re hopeful that Ferrera and the writers want to honor the relationship, too. Perhaps Amy and Jonah will, like a certain sitcom couple before them, take a break and pick things back up when she returns. If she returns…

How do you think Superstore will say goodbye to America Ferrera and Amy? Leave your hopes, feelings, and predictions for the future in the comments!

Superstore airs Thursdays at 8/7c on NBC.