Netflix signed a last-minute deal with The Walt Disney Co. to keep one of its longtime sitcom staples, Arrested Development, on its platform. 

All five seasons of the Jason Bateman comedy had been set to leave Netflix on March 15, an exit that even included the latter two campaigns, which were produced by Disney-owned 20th Century Studios specifically for Netflix. 

However, Netflix will not only keep all five seasons on its platform, it will have exclusive streaming rights. That means the Disney-controlled Hulu platform will relinquish the first three seasons of Arrested Development later this year. 

Disney, however, will keep linear TV rights, meaning it can license episodes to broadcast stations or cable networks in off-net syndication. 

Netflix first revealed news of the deal on Twitter last week, and Vulture was the first to pick up on that and flesh out details. 

Created by Mitchell Hurwitz and starring Bateman, Henry Winkler, Portia de Rossi, Will Arnett, Jeffrey Tambor and Michael Cera, among numerous other well-knowns, Arrested Development is a single-camera comedy about a wealthy but highly dysfunctional Newport Beach family. It ran for three seasons of critical acclaim and middling ratings on Fox from 2003-2006. 

The series won six Primetime Emmys and received 123 nominations overall.

Licensed repeats, however, would later flourish on Netflix in the early days of the streaming revolution. And when Netflix ventured into making original series, it revived Arrested Development for two more seasons, albeit with less praise from the show's rabid core faithful. 

A 15-episode fourth season, which returned the core cast, ran in 2003, while a 16-episode fifth campaign was split between 2018 and 2019. ▪️

Jessica Walter, who starred as the Bluth family matriarch in Arrested Development, died Wednesday at her New York City home in her sleep. She was 80.

"It is with a heavy heart that I confirm the passing of my beloved mom, Jessica," said Walter's daughter Brooke Bowman, who is senior VP of programming and development Fox. "A working actor for over six decades, her greatest pleasure was bringing joy to others through her storytelling both on screen and off. While her legacy will live on through her body of work, she will also be remembered by many for her wit, class and overall joie de vivre.”

Walter, whose career spanned six decades, began her turn as Lucille Bluth in the quirky cult comedy Arrested Development in 2003, appearing in all five seasons. She also voiced Mallory Archer in the FXX TV series Archer.

“Jessica Walter’s spectacular turn as the devilish Lucille Bluth is one of the great comedic performances of television history, and we loved working with her as much as audiences loved her on Arrested Development," 20th Television said in a statement. "Our hearts go out to her family and friends, particularly her daughter, and our former colleague, Brooke. We know that heaven just got a whole lot funnier with Jessica now in residence.”

Other notable TV roles include Amy Prentiss, for which she won an Emmy, and guest spots on Trapper John, M.D., The Streets of San Francisco, The Love Boat and Murder, She Wrote.

On the big screen she starred opposite Clint Eastwood in Play Misty for Me, in Slums of Beverly Hills and in The Flamingo Kid, among others. Tributes to her on Thursday came from Viola Davis, Tony Hale and Netflix, among others.