The Emmy-winning Louis C.K. has a famously intense work ethic: He writes, produces, stars, directs and edits the show, as well as maintaining a thriving standup career. He said the extra time between the show's recently completed third season and its fourth will help him keep the series as good as can be.
"I want the show to keep getting better," C.K. said on a conference call with reporters Tuesday. "I want season 4 to go somewhere new."
The break, C.K. told TheWrap, will help him "feel hungry." He said his anxiousness to return wil fuel his creativity.
"I get really irritated when I'm not working or not on the air," he said. "There's a big part of me that does not want to do this."
C.K. said he thinks of the show's first three seasons as a trilogy, and hopes to begin a new story with the fourth.
The longer break between seasons will also allow him much more time to shoot and edit the show, as well as focus on standup. He has previously begun filming seasons in March for June airing, which forced him to edit and promote the show simultaneously.
The comedian, who is currently on a national tour, said he plans to begin shooting season 4 in September or October of 2013, for airing in May 2014.
FX president John Landgraf said C.K. asked for the extra time, and that working on the show has been an "incredibly joyful process." He said the longer break will give C.K. more time to grow as an artist.
"Sometimes there isn't time to live when you've got a successful show and a successful career," Landgraf said.
C.K. hired Woody Allen's editor, Susan E. Morse, to handle editing for the third season, but her husband died and he reclaimed editing duties. Having an editor made him realize how essential it is to the storytelling process, he said.
"I think what I'm learning is I've got to edit the show myself," he said. "I had to take the reins back."
C.K. said working on the show takes a personal toll, but that he's worked toward it for more than 25 years of doing standup and accepts it. Like his character on the show, C.K. shares joint custody of two young daughters, and only shoots the show three days a week so he can spend more time with them.
"I think we have a pretty good thing going, meaning me my ex-wife and them," he said. "But I've got to say goodbye to them every week. It's something that gets routine but never easy."
