"Nashville" is headed to a new network.
CMT has ordered a fifth season of the country music drama — which centers on country music stars played by Connie Britton and Hayden Panettiere — after ABC canceled it in May after four seasons.
"CMT heard the fans. The wave of love and appreciation they have unleashed for 'Nashville' has been overwhelming," Brian Philips, president of CMT, said in a statement. "'Nashville' is a perfect addition to our evolving line-up of big music specials, documentaries, and original series. We see our fans and ourselves in this show and we will treasure it like no other network. 'Nashville' belongs on CMT."
Series star Charles Esten will celebrate the news in Nashville with CMT host Cody Alan and other cast members. However, no cast list was included in the CMT announcement.
Fans who watch the series online take note: Hulu will continue to stream episodes of "Nashville" the day after they air on CMT. Production, of course, will stay in Nashville with Ed Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz at the helm.
"'Nashville' has long been a fan favorite show on Hulu and we are so proud to continue to make new episodes available for fans to stream the day after they air," Craig Erwich, SVP and head of content at Hulu, said in a statement. "We look forward to bringing even more episodes of this acclaimed series to its passionate and devoted audience."
Producers Lionsgate and ABC Studios were also involved in brokering the new deal.
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"CMT and Hulu are the perfect combination for our iconic and beloved series 'Nashville' and we want to thank the incredible fans for their unwavering support--#Nashies, you helped make this possible," Kevin Beggs, chairman of the Lionsgate Television Group, said in a statement. "We also want to extend our appreciation to the State of Tennessee, City of Nashville, and Ryman Hospitality for their unending support. They have been a key ingredient to the continued success of this show and we're thrilled to extend our partnership for a fifth season."
The season four finale, "Maybe You'll Appreciate Me Someday," tied up a few loose ends: evil teenage daughter Maddie realized her weird older friend was creepy and reunited with her mom, Rayna, dad, Deacon, and little sister, Daphne; Gunnar and Scarlett were about to split but ended their final show together with a big, romantic kiss; Will stood up to his homophobic bully and got back together with his ex; the truth came out about Layla's manipulation and she got what was coming to her. But it also left one incredibly gigantic thread hanging.
After Juliette confessed her struggle with drugs and depression and the circumstances that lead to Jeff Fordham's accident, she was on a private jet, heading back to Nashville to reunite with her baby daddy, Avery. In the closing moments of the episode, we saw Avery waiting at the airport, only to be told that Juliette's jet was missing.
Is Juliette alive?! Will she and Avery live happily ever after?! Apparently, we'll find out in season five of "Nashville" when it premieres on CMT.
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