9-1-1: Lone Star‘s future hangs in the balance ahead of the Season 5 premiere, and Rob Lowe has a disappointing update. The Fox first responder drama premiered in 2020 and is the first and only spinoff of 9-1-1. While the series was renewed by Fox for a fifth season in 2023 after 9-1-1 moved to ABC, many people were starting to be concerned about the future after it was announced that Season 5 was going to be delayed to the 2024-25 season instead of coming back during the back half of the 2023-24 season after the strikes.
A report in June revealed that 9-1-1: Lone Star Season 5 could be the last for the drama following unsuccessful negotiations between the cast and studio over the last two years. While nothing has been confirmed, Lowe, who plays firefighter Captain Owen Strand, told Variety that he believes the fifth season will be the last, noting that everyone “went into it pretty much knowing that it was going to be the last season, so that affected everything we did.”
9-1-1 LONE STAR: L-R: Brian Michael Smith, Rob Lowe, Julian Works and Natacha Karam in the “Best “of Men episode of 9-1-1 LONE STAR airing Tuesday, May 16 (8:00-9:01 PM ET/PT) on FOX. © 2023 Fox Media LLC. CR: Kevin Estrada/FOX.
– Kevin Estrada/FOX)
Lowe went on to share that it’s “the end of a certain type of show we once had an opportunity to make, and I think they’re great.” Since the cast and crew treated Season 5 as the final season, and Lowe isn’t too positive a Season 6 is happening, it is not looking good. It’s likely Fox won’t make a decision on Season 6 until Season 5 premieres next month, but from the sounds of it, fans may have to prepare themselves to say goodbye to the 126.
Lone Star‘s future also doesn’t help the fact that Sierra McClain has departed the drama following contract negotiations. The actress and singer played dispatcher Grace Ryder, who is the wife of Jim Parrack’s Judd Ryder. Parrack will also be taking a step back from the series, or rather, his character will, as Judd will be taking care of his son Wyatt, who is rehabilitating after a severe accident. Wyatt’s actor, Jackson Pace, has been promoted to series regular, and from the looks of a recent promo, he’s stepping into his stepmother’s shoes at the Call Center.
Fans will just have to tune in to 9-1-1: Lone Star Season 5 on Monday, Sept. 23 at 8 p.m. ET on Fox’s 2024 fall schedule to see what happens and hope that the 126 isn’t going anywhere any time soon. The series could go either way, but at the very least, if everyone thought that the upcoming season would be the last, that could mean that stories will be wrapping up by the finale while also leaving room to set up Season 6 if needed.