Fans were devastated when ABC surprisingly cancelled Nashville after four successful seasons.
Following the Season 4 finale, which ended on a MAJOR cliffhanger, Lionsgate TV assured fans this would not be the end of the country music-focused drama.
“What a cliffhanger!” they wrote. “But we won’t leave you hanging. There’s more story to be told. #BringBackNashville”
The cryptic tweet gave us and the cast, who were blindsided by the cancellation, hope for a future!
Fans started a social media campaign using the hashtag #BringBackNashville, which caught the attention of CMT. The show’s fanbase has proved their loyalty and when CMT announced they would be bringing the show back for a fifth season, fans, who are appropriately called “Nashies”, were elated!
As weeks have passed since the exciting announcement, more information has been released, including who’s coming back and who’s not. Sadly, TV Line has confirmed that Aubrey Peeples, who plays Layla Grant, and Will Chase, who plays Luke Wheeler, will not be returning for Season 5.
On the plus side, Hayden Panettiere and Connie Britton are “both poised to return”. The actresses play Juliette Barnes and Rayna Jaymes, respectively.
While we have all this information, it has still not been announced when the show will return, until now!
Charles Esten, who plays Deacon Claybourne, made an appearance at the Grand Ole Opry over the weekend and announced when Nashville will debut on its new network. The show’s creator, Callie Khouri, is said to have been in the audience.
The Grand Ole Opry tweeted the announcement.
.@CharlesEsten just brought some news about #NashvilleCMT… It will return to @CMT and @hulu this December! pic.twitter.com/NPC1eeeWCG
— Grand Ole Opry (@opry) August 13, 2016
The show will premiere in December on CMT and will also be streamed on Hulu. An exact premiere date has not been set, but we know that they are getting ready to start filming!
The show’s Scenic Artist and Prop Maker just revealed on Twitter that he’s received his “official phone call to work on Nashville Season 5.” How exciting!
We can’t wait for December! Until then, here’s a Juliette Barnes/Rayna James collaboration from Season 1.