Woody’s arm in season 5 was in a cast because Woody Harrelson had a real arm injury during that time, so the show wrote it into the character’s look. The early episodes treated it as a running joke, but it wasn’t just a costume gag.

What happened

  • Harrelson broke a bone in his arm in a car-related accident.
  • The cast on Woody’s arm in the show reflected that real injury.
  • The joke in the episodes was the show’s way of covering a genuine on-set reality.

Why it shows up

The cast appears in multiple episodes because the injury lasted long enough that the production had to work around it. That’s why viewers noticed it and remembered it as one of those odd continuity details that later became a fan question.

TL;DR

Woody’s arm cast in season 5 was from a real injury to Woody Harrelson , not a story twist.