Janelle James Wants ‘Abbott Elementary’ To Have An ‘MTV Cribs’ Storyline At Ava’s House: “I Don’t Even Know If We Have the Budget for the Fabulousness”

Janelle James says there is still so much she is dying to explore with her Abbott Elementary character, Ava Coleman, after four seasons on the ABC comedy.

Chatting with DECIDER at the Television Academy’s inaugural Televerse Fest in Los Angeles, the Emmy-nominated actress said that while she has had the opportunity to play both the absurdly comedic and the surprisingly dramatic, the beloved (and out of pocket) Abbott Elementary principal still has some tricks up her sleeve.

“Oh, I would love to see Ava’s home in an MTV Cribs–style review,” James said of what she wants to see her character do next. “That’s one thing I’m looking forward to. I don’t know if that’s going to happen ever, because I don’t even know if we have the budget for the fabulousness. I would love to see that.”

Cribs, which ran on MTV throughout the early aughts, was a documentary-type series that saw celebrities and notable people giving private tours of their lavish homes. The series — which welcomed guests such as Destiny’s Child, Naomi Campbell, and Gene Simmons in its heyday — has been spoofed and parodied more times than one can count, so why couldn’t Abbott do it?

In fact, the show thus far has explored the homes of most other Abbott Elementary teachers, including Janine Teagues (Quinta Brunson), Barbara Howard (Sheryl Lee Ralph), and Melissa Schemmenti (Lisa Ann Walter), which also includes Jacob Hill (Chris Perfetti) as the two teachers live together. It’s only right that we should finally explore the abode of Abbott’s most luxurious and most

What’s more, after a season chock full of highs and lows for her character — including a firing and rehiring over Abbott’s blackmailing of the nearby golf course and a relationship with a sweet IT representative who catches her by surprise — James says she is also open to it all.

“I would love to just see her continue to evolve. I mean, I know she will continue to evolve and her personality and her relationship with her coworkers and and see her with this relationship with this man,” she explained, adding that there is still so much to learn about her.

While the audience has been keyed in on Ava’s growth year after year, it’s only been in the last two seasons or so that the changes have felt more than superficial. Her current relationship with O’Shon (Matthew Law) has served as a reminder that she is not the shallow clout-chaser she once was. She also genuinely cares about the students, something Brunson — who also serves as writer, creator, and EP — has been teasing since Season 1.

It is all in service of great character growth and development, something James told DECIDER she appreciates and looks forward to each year. “I just want to see it continue and to evolve and get deeper,” the actress and stand-up comedian said.

There will be much more to see of her, no doubt, as Season 5 of Abbott Elementary premieres on ABC on October 1. In the meantime, you can catch up on the first four seasons of Abbott Elementary, which are currently streaming on Hulu and Disney+.

If you’re new to Hulu, you can get started with a 30-day free trial on the streamer’s basic (with ads) plan. After the trial period, you’ll pay $9.99/month. If you want to upgrade to Hulu ad-free, it costs $18.99/month.

If you want to stream even more and save a few bucks a month while you’re at it, we recommend subscribing to one of the Disney+ Bundles, all of which include Hulu. These bundles start at $10.99/month for ad-supported Disney+ and Hulu and goes up to $29.99/month for Disney+, Hulu, and Max, all ad-free.