Ted Lasso's Brendan Hunt Breaks Down Jamie's Big Return In Episode 6 — And Has A Definitive Answer For Ted And Rebecca Shippers

Hold me closer Tiny Dancer, Prancer, and Vixen... because "Ted Lasso" Season 4 went and skipped right over Christmas, with Episode 6 taking us to the end of the holiday season and a night out with everyone on New Year's Eve.

But we still got a Christmas gift in the form of Jamie Tartt, as former series regular Phil Dunster reprised his fan-favorite role — minus any of the Jamie/Keeley/Roy love triangle "poopeh."

In fact, best buds Roy and Jamie hit the dance floor during this festive outing — a routine that unfortunately exacerbated Roy's knee injury and sent him straight to the hospital, where he was so doped up on pain medication that he said "I love you, Keeley"... to Dr. Erin. (D'oh!)

Matthijs, meanwhile, caught up with Rebecca at the hospital in time to rekindle their romance as the clock struck midnight — probably not what all those Ted-and-Rebecca 'shippers out there were hoping for once Michelle gave Ted her blessing to move on and start dating. (Then again, he seemed to hit it off with Jane's stage manager in Episode 5, and we can't imagine that character was introduced only to never be seen again.)

Elsewhere, Beard misread the signals from a younger woman and was visibly stung when he realized she considered him old. And just as Alice and Gemma finally seemed to be getting to a good place, Gemma inadvertently upset her coach by telling the team that Alice thought no one liked her.

TVLine spoke with series star and co-creator Brendan Hunt about Jamie's return, what Michelle's conversation with Ted means for his romantic future, and whether Rebecca's reunion with Matthijs should finally put an end to all that #Tedbecca speculation. We also got his take on Beard's bruised ego and the latest setback for Alice and Gemma.

TVLINE | Jamie is the first major character from the men's team to return, and he doesn't show up until Episode 6. Was it a conscious decision to hold off on those cameos until the women's team had been fully established? And once you knew you'd have Phil Dunster back, was it important that Jamie return in service of an ongoing storyline rather than build an entire episode around him?
HUNT | To the latter question, yes, 100%. It would be rather inorganic just to bring someone in and say, "Here's a bottle episode about Jamie." Especially in a 10-episode season, that wouldn't have been the right emphasis.

And emphasis really is why the answer to your first question is yes. It was very intentional. To a degree, people are going to be jonesing for what we were doing before, which is totally understandable, and you've got to go cold turkey a little bit. If we give people a little bit of this character or that character, then they might too easily start looking at that. Let's say we brought Phil back in Episode 3. Then they're looking at Phil and not looking at all this new stuff that we're trying to convey. So it would have been a disservice to our new story and our new cast to bring back the old team too soon.

TVLINE | By the end of Episode 6, Michelle has essentially given Ted her blessing to move on. Does he have his sights set on the stage manager, or might another romance arise over these last four episodes?
HUNT | No, he's heading in the right direction, though. He got permission that he didn't actually need, but his mom done messed him up to some degree, so he thought he did need it. But is Ted really, really ready to let himself be beloved? That's one of the questions going forward.

TVLINE | By the end of Episode 6, Rebecca and Matthijs are back together. There were clearly reasons why their relationship didn't progress further over those three years. Now that they've reunited, is it smooth sailing, or is there still instability in that relationship?
HUNT | Every relationship, no matter how solid it seems from the outside, is a cheeseburger away from complete self-destruction at any given moment. But by the end of Episode 6, they're stronger than they've ever been before.

In terms of why their relationship hadn't progressed more in the previous three years, let's keep in mind that he hadn't been in London full-time. She was able to commit without committing. But now she's got to be confronted with that. Is she ready to do that? Is he the guy to do it with? We shall see.

But certainly by the end of Episode 6, they're in a better place than they've ever been before because they got to the other side of something, which is one of the most important things you can do as a couple.

TVLINE | I cannot go a day without opening social media and seeing Ted-and-Rebecca 'shippers looking for any morsel of evidence that the show is heading in that direction. I've spoken to Jason about the fact that two people can be soulmates without it being romantic, but those fans are still chomping at the bit for some indication that #Tedbecca is coming this season.
HUNT | We are grateful for everyone who watches our show and whatever opinions they would like to form about it.

TVLINE | Noah Wyle recently made an interesting observation about shipping discourse in regards to "The Pitt." To paraphrase, he said there's the show that you're creating, and there's the show that the fandom is creating as they watch it. I feel like we've run into a bit of that here — which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it is certainly interesting to see.
HUNT | Passion is passion, and we are thankful for the passion. But yeah, we've been pretty clear about what we think that relationship is, and it's not going to change. It's just not what the relationship is. Full stop.

TVLINE | We see Beard take an interest in a younger woman in Episode 6, but the signals get crossed, and he's embarrassed when he realizes she considers him old. We also glimpsed in the Season 4 teaser trailer that Beard eventually has a full head of hair. Does that rejection trigger a midlife crisis of sorts?
HUNT | That remains to be seen. But you have certainly identified something. Put it this way: That moment never gets discussed again, but its effects will be very present for the remainder of the season.

TVLINE | So with Ted and Beard both single and maybe ready to mingle, does the show have any fun with that dynamic over the last four episodes?
HUNT | They don't go on any double dates, if that's what you're asking. But if we're able to come back for Season 5, then maybe we'll finally cash in that 'ship. At the moment, they're not out there having a night at the Roxy just yet.

TVLINE | Just when it seems like Alice and Gemma have turned a corner, Alice is once again upset with Gemma for telling the players about one of her deepest insecurities. How do they come back from this latest rupture when their relationship was already on such thin ice?
HUNT | Even though they've taken two steps back there at the end, I think overall in the episode they took three steps forward. They were in such a bad place before. I think they're still in a better place, and that opens the door to them working things out a little bit more, should they so choose.

TVLINE | We also see Alice's partner pushing her to get out there, be more social, and put herself out there. Does that relationship play a larger role in Alice's storyline as we head into the final four episodes?
HUNT | That I don't think I should answer.