Until we start seeing new footage from the fourth season of 'Arrested Development,' we're going to star treating every casting announcement with holy reverence, right down to the re-appearance of the infamous Bluth family stair-car.  So amidst the myriad of former 'Arrested Development' guest stars announced to be returning for the Netflix revival, which is stirring rumors of the long-awaited movie?

Jeff Garlin may not have had the biggest role in the first few seasons of 'Arrested Development,' but his re-appearance might be the most important news of all.  Paste was first to confirm the news with Garlin himself that Netflix's season 4 revival had shot scenes with his movie studio executive Mort Meyers, saying:

I can’t give you any details, but I can tell you I have been filming. I don’t even know if I’ll make the final cut. I’ve got a few more days of filming. Am I filming? That’s the only true thing I can say. Now am I in it? I don’t know if I’ll end up being in it, they might cut everything with me. But I am filming some episodes.”

But what could it mean?  As fans of the series well remember, Meyers found out about Maeby Funke's true age by the third season finale "Development Arrested," costing her her ill-gotten job.  Still, a new window opened as Meyers revealed that studios had been clamoring for the rights to her story, as the final shot of the series concluded with Maeby and Meyers pitching the Bluth family story to Ron Howard, who saw the story more as a movie.

Might Garlin's casting then imply that the new season of 'Arrested Development' might pick up the idea of turning the Bluths into a movie, culminating in the real movie we all hope Netflix's revival leads to?  That certainly seems to be the operant theory picking up speed on the internet.

What say you?  Do you think Jeff Garlin signing up for 'Arrested Development' season 4 strengthens hope for an 'Arrested Development' movie?  What do you hope to see from the new season when it debuts in spring 2013?  Pitch us your ideas in the comments below!

More From ScreenCrush