'Bates Motel' season 5 spoilers, news: TV series finale to differ from 'Psycho's' ending

"Bates Motel" may have been inspired by the 1960s Alfred Hitchcock film, "Psycho," but it looks like the series may veer away from its inspiration as it crosses the finish line, with this season being the last.

Kerry Ehrin, the showrunner, said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, "We are not doing Psycho. We go through Psycho. Psycho visits us, let me put it that way. We're definitely doing our own ending of Bates Motel."

One of the biggest changes that viewers might see incorporated in the TV series is in the iconic character Marion Crane, who will be played by R&B singer Rihanna. According to Ehrin, they have tweaked the role to make it more modern. She noted that the film version of Marion Crane was based on a character written in the 1950s, so their goal was to add layers of complexity, humanity, and power to her in the TV series.

Ehrin, understandably, is keeping mum about how the show will end, however, viewers can expect that the changes in Marion Crane might also lead to a different fate for her. In the movie, the character was killed by Norman Bates (Freddie Highmore) in one of the most iconic moments in the history of film. Norman's ending may also be quite different from the movie, wherein he was locked up in a mental institution after he was discovered as the murderer, having been completely taken over by his "Mother" persona.

This is supported by Carlton Cuse, the show's executive producer, in an interview with Variety. He said: "I think that would be a real letdown and uninspired on our part. We are going to cross through some of the mythology of the movie, 'Psycho,' but our story will have its own distinct ending that is just like our show, it's very much its own creation. What happens to Norman is not something that we're going to say here but his fate is not exactly the same as it is in the movie."

Rihanna was cast as Marion when Cuse found out that the performer is a fan of "Bates Motel." This will not be her first venture outside music. She also appeared in films "This is the End" and "Annie." She will also be appearing in upcoming movies "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets" and "Ocean's Eight."

The fifth and final season of "Bates Motel" is set two years after the death of Norma (Vera Farmiga). Norman, now a grown man, is struggling with his "Mother" persona. Despite being killed by her son in the previous season, Farmiga will continue to play as Norma Bates in Norman's hallucinations. His delusions will trigger him to kill even more people.

Episode 5 of season 5, titled "Dreams Die First," will air on March 20, Monday, at 10 p.m. EDT on A&E.