‘Nashville’ Stars Reveal What to Expect from Season Five

Season five of Nashville is about to shake things up a bit between the relationships and their storylines, according to the cast behind the characters.

Written by Kelly Brickey
‘Nashville’ Stars Reveal What to Expect from Season Five
Nashville on CMT Cast

Nashies, the time has finally arrived: new Nashville episodes are back and this season is about to fire things up in a whole new way.

Heading over to CMT from ABC, the cast could not wait to get back on set in order to continue telling the stories and singing the songs that their devoted fans fell in love with from the get-go. But it’s the strong development running into this anticipated season that has both the actors and their Nashies sitting on the edge of their seats waiting to know what happens next for the characters.

As last seen in the show, Gunnar Scott and Scarlett O’Connor left The Exes in a weird spot as they shared the stage for what seemed like the last time together, but ended the night off with a spontaneous kiss driven by undetermined feelings. On Sam Palladio’s terms, he’s hoping that Gunnar figures out a way to capture his soft side and use it to inspire him on a solo mission.

“I would love to see what Gunnar’s capable of and see if he can exist outside of a duo. It’s like we’ve formed such a bond, the two characters have. It’d be kind of interesting to explore…see how far he can take it under his own steam. It may not be very far. You know, we got a taste of that with Elton John last year and Gunnar gets a chance to go up there and show people what he’s made of. So that will be an interesting thing to explore them, Scarlett and Gunnar, outside of the partnership,” Palladio revealed to Sounds Like Nashville.

Scarlett, on the other hand, is going on her own journey with or without music that will possibly lead her into a new adventure throughout season five, according to Clare Bowen.

“There’s a lot that’s changed for Scarlett,” said Bowen. “And she’s not actually singing a whole lot, which is fine with me. She’s gone on more of a discovery of caring about herself and taking care of herself. In the moment when you find her in season five, she’s picking her feelings up off the ceiling and the walls and carpet and it’s everywhere.  It’s a mess. I think that’s something that I have yet to discover in season five that Scarlett is singing about what she’s feeling now as this new creature who actually, I’m hoping, discovers she is a precious creature and she deserves to be loved properly.”

Deacon Claybourne, who is played by the great Charles Esten, defended his daughter, Maddie, in the midst of a compromising position toward the end of season four. It was that inciting incident that led Deacon to dedicate himself to continue on his path to becoming a better representation for his family.

“So his lone concern became taking care of her [Maddie] and that’s where we start now. That’s his focus. It’s being as good a husband as he can to Rayna and being as good as a father as he can to these girls. So that’s where we are now and clearly, that doesn’t get easier,” he told SLN.

Thinking about Maddie and her progression throughout the course of the series, this season really hits home with Lennon Stella as it boasts the blossoming of her first real relationship as a teenager. As a relatable storyline that hits home with many girls her age, Stella hopes her character takes care of herself this time around before making another bad move.

“Last season, she had a different boyfriend but it wasn’t nearly as serious. It was more innocent, I guess, and more just like young love. But this season, the boyfriend is—I think he plays 25—so he’s older and there’s struggles, like real life struggles and things that I really think teenagers and young adults, or adults or whatever, they can relate to it. It’s totally relatable and it’s real and it’s really fun to play,” she admitted.

Nashies and viewers can tune in to catch a preview of the first hour of season five’s premiere episode at 9 p.m. ET on CMT. The full, two-hour season premiere airs Thursday, January 5 at 9 p.m. ET on CMT.