Despite a move to NBC for the show’s fifth season, “Magnum P.I.” has been canceled and will not be back for a sixth season, Deadline reports. According to the outlet, the network opted against ordering additional episodes of the series beyond the 20-episode fifth season it picked up last year.
Upon the show’s launch as a midseason replacement, NBC aired only the first ten episodes while deciding to hold the remaining ten for the 2023-2024 season due to many factors, one of which can be attributed to the ongoing WGA strike.
Cast options on the Jay Hernandez-led series are said to be expiring on June 30, which is why a decision on the fate of the series had to be made immediately. “NBC had three scenarios, to pick up a sixth season, to extend the options on the cast or to release the actors and end the series,” said Deadline in its reporting. “Networks have been very conservative with pickups amid the writers strike as it’s unclear when scripted series could go into production, so an early renewal appeared unlikely.”
A modern take on the classic series of the same name, “Magnum P.I.” centers on Thomas Magnum (Hernandez), a decorated former Navy SEAL who, upon returning home from Afghanistan, repurposes his military skills to become a private investigator. A charming rogue, an American hero and a die-hard Detroit Tigers fan, Magnum lives in a guest cottage on Robin’s Nest, the luxurious estate where he works as a security consultant to supplement his P.I. business.
Photo by Zack Dougan/NBC
A co-production between CBS Studios and Universal Television, “Magnum P.I.” was canceled by CBS after four seasons. At the time, then CBS Entertainment President Kelly Kahl said of the cancellation, “You have some tough decisions to make and you have lots of factors — and I’m not going to rule [the licensing fee] out as one of them. It was a great team to work with, and one of the tougher decisions we had to make.”
Seeing as its co-producers couldn’t make it financially feasible to continue the series, fans shouldn’t expect a last-minute reprieve from a streamer like Netflix, especially when you consider current season episodes stream on Peacock while the first four seasons were at one time available on Paramount+.
Ratings for Season 5 episodes of “Magnum P.I.” were reportedly on par with some of the shows already renewed by NBC for next season.
In addition to Hernandez, the series starred Perdita Weeks, Zachary Knighton, Stephen Hill, Amy Hill, and Tim Kang. Eric Guggenheim, John Davis, Justin Lin, John Fox, Barbie Kligman, David Wolkove and Gene Hong executive produced the series. CBS Studios produces in association with Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group.
Check out the Season 5 trailer below.