‘Magnum P.I.’ Star Jay Hernandez ‘Didn’t Love’ the Series Finale, Hopes a Movie Is ‘Possible’

NBC’s Magnum P.I. has come to an end after five seasons, and star Jay Hernandez isn’t afraid to admit his mixed feelings on the series finale.

“I actually floated the idea of a standalone film. I suppose it’s still possible,” Hernandez, 45, posted on X on Wednesday, January 3, in response to fan calls to #SaveMagnumPI. “If I’m being totally honest I didn’t love the show ending how it did.”

The reboot of the ‘80s series of the same name starring Tom Selleck premiered in September 2018. Hernandez played Thomas Magnum, a private investigator and former navy SEAL who repurposes his military skills to solve crimes in Hawaii. Perdita Weeks, Zachary Knighton, Amy Hill, Betsey Phillips, Tim Kang and Stephen Hill rounded out the cast of Magnum P.I.

The series finale opened with Weeks’ character, Higgins, discovering a diamond engagement ring in Magnum’s dresser drawer, prompting her to spiral about their romantic future together. When it is revealed that the ring is actually for Rick (Knighton) to propose to Suzy (Phillips), Higgins is relieved.

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Yet, at the end of the episode she tells Magnum, "Well, just for the record, if in the future you did ask me to marry you, I'd say yes." The series ends on the couple sharing a heartwarming kiss while surrounded by the rest of the cast, leaving audiences to hope the pair will one day tie the knot.

In June 2023, NBC announced that the fifth season of the show would be the last, and the final episode aired shortly after Hernandez’s social media post on Wednesday night. Despite his dissatisfaction with the series ending, Hernandez made sure to express his gratitude to Magnum P.I.’s loyal fanbase.

“To all the #magnum #ohana thank you for always supporting us! Y'all have been AMAZING. We're humbled by your dedication,” he wrote. “I know I've been inactive on this platform for reasons you're well aware of but I hope this space of positivity persists even if the show does not. Keep being kind and always curious.”

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Hernandez was not the only one with conflicting feelings on the show’s ending. Showrunner Eric Guggenheim spoke to TVLine in October 2023 and shared that they wrote the finale with another season in mind — but he is proud of how it turned out regardless.

“There are a couple of threads left dangling that would have been picked up in a Season 6, but I didn’t want to end on a cliffhanger. If I’m being honest, I guess I wanted to play it safe. Too many shows have gotten burned with cliffhangers,” Guggenheim, 50, said. “Is it how I would choose to end the show? No. But if it has to be the last episode, I think it absolutely works as a [series] finale.”

Last month, Weeks dished exclusively with Us Weekly on the close bond the cast has developed over their five seasons together.

“You spend an inordinate amount of time with these people. It's bizarre,” she told Us. “I did some calculating, actually Jay in fact said, he said, you've spent more time with me, then you have all of your other friends put together for the whole of your life. And I was like, that's actually true, because it's like 15 hours a day for eight months of every year for five years. So that's my takeaway. I know these people incredibly well.”

Weeks, 38, added that the cast is “super duper close,” and that “there’s a lot of love and I would be overjoyed to work with any of them again.”

All five seasons of Magnum P.I. are streaming on Peacock.

With reporting from Leanne Aciz Stanton