The fourth season of Bates Motel aired from March 7-May 16, 2016. The season consisted of 10 episodes and aired on Mondays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on A&E. The series itself is described as a "contemporary prequel" to the 1960 film Psycho, following the life of Norman Bates and his mother Norma prior to the events portrayed in the Hitchcock film. The series takes place in the fictional town of White Pine Bay, Oregon.
The season received critical acclaim from television critics, and was nominated for two Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards. It also won three People's Choice Awards for Cable TV Drama, Cable TV Actress (Farmiga), and Cable TV Actor (Highmore). Bates Motel fourth season maintained consistent ratings throughout its airing, with the season premiere drawing in 1.55 million viewers and the finale totalling 1.50 million. The season was released on Blu-ray and DVD on October 18, 2016.
Cast and characters
Main
Vera Farmiga as Norma Louise Bates
Freddie Highmore as Norman Bates
Max Thieriot as Dylan Massett
Olivia Cooke as Emma Decody
Nestor Carbonell as Sheriff Alex Romero
Recurring
Damon Gupton as Dr. Gregg Edwards
Jaime Ray Newman as Rebecca Hamilton
Andrew Howard as Will Decody
Terence Kelly as Dickie Bolton
Ryan Hurst as Chick Hogan
Marshall Allman as Julian Howe
Kelly-Ruth Mercier as Nurse Penny
Aliyah O'Brien as Regina
Karina Logue as Audrey Ellis
Fiona Vroom as Vicki Monroe
Craig Erickson as Howard Collins
Anika Noni Rose as Liz Babbitt
Louis Ferreira as Doctor Guynan
David Cubitt as Sam Bates
Luke Roessler as Young Norman
Guest
Kevin Rahm as Bob Paris
Keenan Tracey as Gunner
Alexia Fast as Athena
Alessandro Juliani as Interviewer
Lindsey Ginter as Mac Dixon
Kenny Johnson as Caleb Calhoun
Gina Chiarelli as O'Sullivan
Carmen Moore as Grace Wei
Jay Brazeau as Justin Willcock
Molly Price as Detective Chambers
Production
Casting
Ryan Hurst returned to the series as Chick Hogan, a recurring character throughout the third season. Damon Gupton was cast in the recurring role of Gregg Edwards, a doctor at Pineview Mental Institution. Jaime Ray Newman played a major recurring role throughout the season as Rebecca Hamilton, a former girlfriend of Romero.
Filming
The series was filmed on location in Aldergrove, British Columbia. At the beginning of the first season, a replica of the original Bates Motel set from the film Psycho was built on 272nd Street. Nestor Carbonell directed one episode of the fourth season. Principal photography for season 4 began on November 30, 2015 in Vancouver and surrounding areas, and concluded on April 6, 2016. Highmore written the eighth episode of the season.
Episodes
Reception
Critical response
The fourth season of Bates Motel has been met with critical acclaim. The season holds a 100% positive rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 17 responses from television critics.
Ratings
Overall, the fourth season of Bates Motel averaged 1.45 million viewers, with a 0.6 rating in the 18–49 demographic. A Cable Live +3 data is used here as Live +7 was not made available.
Awards and nominations
In its fourth season, Bates Motel was nominated for 17 awards, winning three.