'Switched at Birth' season 5 release date, plot spoilers: Premiere scheduled for January 2017, Bay and Daphne to return home

Freeform's critically-acclaimed family drama "Switched at Birth" is now heading to its fifth and final season, but fans will have to wait a little longer for the show's return which has now been moved to 2017. As far as the story goes, series creator Lizzy Weiss assured fans that a happy ending is in store for both lead characters Bay Kennish and Daphne Vasquez.

Season 4 left off with a major cliffhanger, just when Bay and Daphne are settling in their own lives. Bay works as a tattoo artist while Daphne found a job as a health clinic worker. Everything seemed to be fine, until Bay got a call from home which appeared to be very serious, leading both of them to go back home. Fans speculate that the call was related to John (D. W. Moffett) and Kathryn's(Lea Thompson) marital problems and their decision to split up.

Just Jared Jr. previously spoke to Bay's portrayer Vanessa Marano where the young actress teased how the farewell season will play out. "This entire season has a lot of returning story lines actually," she explained. "We left a lot of loose ends open last season so now we're tying everything together. There's a lot of...it's very much like a new year because so much time has passed and the girls are at these new places in their lives. You have to revisit stuff to just show how much time has actually passed."

Weiss also announced the soundtrack for the season finale which is Natalie Taylor's "Fight On." Aside from wrapping up five seasons on a positive note, the series creator mentioned that fans will have the closure they need when the show bids farewell next year.

The network has yet to announce a definitive premiere date for "Switched at Birth" season 5 which is expected to return in January 2017.