Hawaii 5-0 has had a respectable run of six seasons on CBS. The show managed to survive the move from its Monday night timeslot circa Seasons 1 - 3 to a Friday night death slot for Seasons 4 - 6 without a significant drop in viewership. Frankly, Hawaii 5-0 feels like it still has a few more years before it runs out of steam. Guest star Jimmy Buffet recently dropped what seemed like a huge spoiler bomb during an appearance on Today when he told the hosts that 5-0 was actually heading into its last year on the air. Fortunately for fans who would have started to freak out at the unexpected announcement, 5-0 executive producer Peter Lenkov took to social media to set the record straight.
Kudos to Peter Lenkov for addressing the rumor via tweet. He managed to both debunk Jimmy Buffett's claim that Hawaii 5-0 would be ending and nip speculation about the death of his character in the bud. Buffett played the helicopter pilot Frank Bama in three episodes of Hawaii 5-0, and his latest appearance was toward the end of Season 6. It wasn't out of the realm of possibility that he would have some inside information about either the end of the show after Season 7 or his character's death in Season 7.
Peter Lenkov really did a kindness to fans who have stuck around since the beginning. Despite drawing ratings that other networks dream of, Hawaii 5-0 doesn't pull in the numbers to guarantee a future. Still, a cancellation suddenly coming in the middle of hiatus would be a surprise. That said, other networks have set precedents for giving cancelled shows one final season to wrap things up, so there was definitely reason to believe that the end could be very nigh for the 5-0 crew. For all we knew, CBS had quietly cancelled 5-0 and we just never knew until Jimmy Buffett decided to spill the beans. The swift assurance that the series still has a healthy future should keep things cool on the 5-0 front for a while.
Of course, Jimmy Buffett's statement that Hawaii 5-0 was entering its last year might have seemed less valid if he hadn't seemed so sure about it. Take a look at Buffett's confident claim from Today:
Hawaii 5-0 has been a pretty perfect show for Friday night viewing, and CBS would have no guarantee that a replacement series could draw as large and loyal a fanbase for the timeslot. It may take a pretty drastic ratings drop for CBS to cancel 5-0. Only time will tell. Season 7 of Hawaii 5-0 will premiere on Friday, September 23 at 9 p.m. ET. Check out our fall TV premiere schedule to see what else you'll be able to catch on the small screen soon.
