WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Lucifer's Season 5B, streaming now on Netflix.
Although God has an extended stay on Earth in Season 5B, Ella Lopez is kept in the dark about knowing who or what Celestials are -- especially that she's been working amongst them. While God does speak with Ella during her hour of need, he doesn't reveal his identity to her.
During an exclusive interview with CBR, Lucifer co-showrunner Joe Henderson delved into why the show's writers decided to keep Ella from truly meeting God. "Honestly, we knew we had to have a scene with Ella and God," Henderson shared. "But a big part of it, as you said, is that Ella has such rock-steady faith now, especially after her crisis of faith."
The showrunner continued, "And what she needed more than knowing that God exists, was hearing her own value and hearing the idea that the darkness makes the light shine brighter."
Henderson also shared that it's particularly important that God chose to visit Ella, out of all the mortals on Earth, before his inevitable departure and that makes Ella incredibly special. The Shadecraft writer stated, "So to us, what was interesting is she's getting the exact right advice at the exact right time, but she doesn't realize she's getting it from the exact right person too. And that's a fun thing to play with because we also just like showing how special Ella is. Out of everyone, God saw her in need and decided to personally reach out."
When asked if Ella might learn about Celestials in Season 6, and possibly through Azrael finally telling Ella her true identity as well, Henderson declined to comment.
Unbeknownst to Ella, she grew up having a close relationship with the Angel of Death, aka Azrael, but always thought that she was an imaginary best friend. Fans first learned this fact during the show's "Boo Normal" episode which revealed that Azrael took a liking to Ella long ago and visits her periodically throughout her life, which makes Ella think that she's insane.
Lucifer stars Tom Ellis as Lucifer Morningstar, Lauren German as Det. Chloe Decker, D.B. Woodside as Amenadiel, Rachael Harris as Dr. Linda Martin, Kevin Alejandro as Det. Dan Espinoza, Lesley-Ann Brandt as Mazikeen Smith and Aimee Garcia as Ella Lopez. Season 5B is now on Netflix.