Warning: Spoilers for After Life season 3!
After Life season 3 brings back most of the characters from the first two series, but why didn't Roisin Conaty's Roxy or Paul Kaye's Psychiatrist return to the hit Netflix show? Ricky Gervais broke his "two-seasons and a special" rule for After Life, feeling that there was more story to tell with a larger ensemble of characters compared to his previous shows, The Office, Extras, and Derek. Notwithstanding this, Roxy, the psychiatrist, and Mandeep Dhillon's newspaper intern Sandy are nowhere to be seen.
After Life is Ricky Gervais' latest TV series, in which he stars as Tony, a widower mourning the recent passing of his wife, Lisa. The first two seasons dealt with his deep depression and suicidal feelings, though with the help of everyone around him, he starts to try and find a way to live again. While his trips to Paul Kaye's vulgar and self-centered Psychiatrist didn't do Tony much good, his platonic friendship with sex worker Roxy gave After Life a lot of the show's warmth.
Ricky Gervais has addressed the absence of Roxy in After Life season 3 (via Digital Spy), stating that "we thought there wasn't quite the story there. It's you know, it's a mutual decision, I didn't write [her] out." While After Life season 3 does reference Roxy, Tony says that he hasn't seen her for ages and that she doesn't come around anymore. Gervais hasn't commented on Paul Kaye's Psychiatrist, though in that instance, it seems clear that that part of Tony's story was done. Season 3 establishes that he's resigned to living while not being bothered about (his) death. His life lessons and revelations come through living and from his friends, rather than his (unorthodox) discussions with his psychiatrist.
While it's a sign of a good writer who knows when there isn't a story for a character and not to shoehorn one in, it's a shame that Ricky Gervais couldn't placate critics of Roxy's absence by finding some way to keep her in Tony's life. Her relationship with Tony in the first two seasons of After Life brought some lovely moments between the two. With season 3 offering character arcs for even very minor characters, the exclusion of a key member of Tony’s support network is certainly felt. With regard to newspaper intern Sandy, Mandeep Dhillon was busy filming another project when After Life season 3 was in production. Ricky Gervais had intended to include the character and had written her scenes. When Dhillon was unavailable, though, Sandy was replaced by a new intern, Coleen (Kath Hughes).
While Roxy isn't on-screen in After Life season 3, her story does continue off-screen via her relationship with Pat the postman (Joe Wilkinson), as he struggles to accept her continuing as a sex worker now they're together. Gervais has said that the final shot of After Life season 3 ends the story on the perfect note, though he's also admitted that season 4 would be "a no brainer." Should he be persuaded to continue the story at a later date, then there is always the chance Roxy (or even Paul Kaye's Psychiatrist) could return.
After Life season 3 is now streaming on Netflix.