'Virgin River' Fans, Annette O'Toole Just Spilled Huge Details About Season 5 Episodes
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Well, folks — it's finally happened. Virgin River season 4 dropped on Netflix, and we've been transported back to the world of small-town drama set amongst picture-perfect views. Needless to say, there was a lot to take in this past season. From Mel (Alexandra Breckenridge) and Jack (Martin Henderson)'s pregnancy to the aftermath of Hope (Annette O'Toole)'s accident, viewers went on an emotional roller coaster. Couple that with Doc (Tim Matheson) discovering he has a grandson and a new physician coming to town, we were definitely invested.
But now that season 4 has been out for a bit, fans are already wondering about season 5. Is there a premiere date? A trailer? Luckily, we did some digging, and there's a lot more in store for Virgin River.
Here's what we know so far about season 5 of Virgin River, including release date, cast, spoilers and more:
When is the release date for Virgin River season 5?
Not only was the Netflix show green lit at the same time as season 4, but production is already underway. Martin Henderson posted a photo from the filming set to Instagram, and judging from the caption, it looks like he's ready to step back into Jack's world once more.
"Jack’s back!" he wrote on July 19 from his trailer. "Day 1 of shooting #virginriver Season 5 — feels good to slip back into [Jack's] boots. Hope y’all enjoy season 4 tomorrow!!!! 😀😀🎉🎉."
As for Virgin River season 5's release date, we don't know that just yet. Given how the show has previously come out with new seasons in the summertime though, we can expect Virgin River season 5 to be released on Netflix in summer 2023.
Who is in the Virgin River season 5 cast?
Based on the events from the end of season 4, we can assume these cast members will return for season 5:
Alexandra Breckenridge as Mel Monroe
Martin Henderson as Jack Sheridan
Tim Matheson as Dr. Vernon "Doc" Mullins
Annette O'Toole as Hope McCrea
Colin Lawrence as John "Preacher" Middleton
Benjamin Hollingsworth as Dan Brady
Sarah Dugdale as Lizzie
Jenny Cooper as Joey Barnes
Zibby Allen as Brie Sheridan
Marco Grazzini as Mike Valenzuela
Lauren Hammersley as Charmaine Roberts
Mark Ghanimé as Dr. Cameron Hayek
Kai Bradbury as Denny Cutler
Teryl Rothery as Muriel
Nicola Cavendish as as Connie
Stacey Farber as Tara Anderson
Gwynyth Walsh as Jo Ellen
Chase Petriw as Christopher
Barbara Pollard as Melissa Montgomery
One of the newest additions to the Virgin River cast comes in the form of Barbara Pollard, who debuted as Melissa Montgomery in season 4. While fans know her as the head of Emerald Lumber, she may be out for new blood after she was discovered to be the sister of Nick (a.k.a. the guy investing in Jack's vision of growing a mobile home business). And since Nick's money comes from family business, Melissa may be hiding a secret vendetta against our favorite barman.
"Nick and Melissa getting involved in this glamping business may or may not become problematic for Jack,” Alexandra Breckenridge told TVLine of Melissa's future ties in Virgin River. “I’m not sure what her intention is yet. She obviously doesn’t have good intentions, and I’m not entirely clear if Nick is oblivious to what Melissa does, or if he knows. He seems like such a kind guy. I definitely don’t think his wife has a damn clue. She would probably have told the entire town by now.”
While we're not too sure about who else is going to come visit Virgin River, we do know the cast has officially gotten together for table reads. In fact, the show's official Instagram posted a Zoom photo of the entire cast and crew together just days before season 4 aired on Netflix.
"A snapshot of our amazing cast during a table read for SEASON 5.. Yes, you heard that right folks," the caption read. "We have now started production on SEASON 5! Also, please meet our lovely new [showrunner] for [season] 5 @patrickseansmith (pictured here.) We can’t WAIT for you to see what we have in store. Don’t forget though, season 4 is only 2 days away. See you soon!!"
Has season 5 of Virgin River started filming?
Yes, filming for Virgin River season 5 has kicked off! Production officially started in early August, and the show continues to share behind-the-scenes moments of new episodes In particular, one video features Martin, Alexandra and Colin Lawrence standing alongside a lake to take a cast selfie.
"Always trying to get the perfect shot here on Virgin River 😉," the show captioned the clip on Instagram on August 17.
In another instance, viewers got a glimpse of an intense season 5 scene. In the snippet, Martin, Tim and director Martin Wood gather on the porch of Virgin River's resident doctor's office to go over their scene before shooting.
"I hope you’re as excited for S5 as we are! ❤️," the hit drama's official Instagram wrote on September 1.
In an October video shared to Instagram, Martin gave his followers a look at filming the new season alongside Alexandra. The short clip featured the co-stars shooting various scenes out in nature, which falls in line with the aesthetic of the Netflix series.
"A day in the life of a show #virginriver," he wrote on October 21. "A few BTS moments to tie you over till season 5 makes it’s way to @netflix next year … "
It also looks like season 5 may debut earlier than we were thinking (fingers crossed!), because Virgin River officially wrapped filming in late November. The show's official Instagram account shared the exciting news with behind-the-scenes footage.
"That’s a WRAP on Season 5! 😉," the video was captioned on a November 21 post.
What will season 5 of Virgin River be about?
After the season 4 finale, there are lots of questions that have us scratching our heads. Thankfully, the series' new showrunner Patrick Sean Smith (he's taking over for previous showrunner Sue Tenney) knows this, and he's not about to let fans down in season 5.
“There is a lot going on, and it took me a while to get my head around what [the characters have] all been through, where they’re heading and where I’d like them to go,” he told TVLine in July. “I wanted it to be as seamless as possible.”
So, does Patrick know where the new season will start? Yes, he does. "Season 5 picks up right after season 4," he continued. "There’s no time jump between four and five."
Before we talk season 5, we need to break down just a little bit of what happened during the finale. While Mel and Jack now know he's the father of their unborn daughter, Charmaine's big paternity reveal has us wondering who the true father of her twins is. And speaking of our favorite Virgin River couple ... after four seasons, they're officially engaged! Maybe, we'll get to see another wedding soon.
As far as Hope goes, we know there's a lot more to explore. Now, that she needs to hire an aide (and thank goodness Lizzie is stepping in to help), we could continue seeing how her brain injury from season 3 will affect her moving forward. In fact, when speaking to Screen Rant in July, Annette O'Toole had hopes about where the show takes her character in season 5.
"I don't know a ton about it, because we don't get the scripts until a couple of weeks before we shoot them," she told the outlet. "I know that Hope is on the road to recovery and she's going to get better, and I'm hoping that there's going to be more of her doing her mayoral duties than we've seen her do. Politics on a local level like that is really interesting, and we haven't really seen that side of her."
Now, in terms of Doc's relationship with Hope, Tim Matheson is hoping for a little wedding ceremony of his own. As he told Parade in July, he would love to see the couple have a vow renewal.
"I would love to see that. It's a connection he's wanted for years and years, and he screwed their relationship up at one point and worked hard to win her back," he revealed to the site. "Then this calamity occurred, so it would be wonderful if they could complete that part of their lives together. I think that's another thing too, when you've been around each other for so many years and gone through so much, it's like, 'Why don't we just be together?'"
Well, we'll have to keep on watching to find out whether these storylines actually come to fruition. But back to Mel and Jack. Now that we know the two will be parents together, how will impending motherhood affect the nurse? That question might be still up in the air, but Alexandra does know for sure that Charmaine's revelation will affect the couple in a significant way.
"Being betrayed on such a massive scale has to come with anger and hurt,” she told TVLine. “He invested himself emotionally and mentally and financially in having these babies. He was really committed. It’s going to be hard, I think, for Jack to let that go."
Speaking of Jack, how is he going to react to all the commotion currently happening in the fictional town? Well, according to Martin, fans are going to see Jack evolve and fight through some of the challenges with Mel by his side.
"From what I understand this season, you’re going to also see Mel and Jack get really close," he told Glamour. "Some of the stuff they’re going to go through is really going to cement their bond. A lot of season 4 was stuff pushing them away, like Jack’s drinking."
Martin concluded: "I don’t think there was true doubt about the relationship, but there were definitely some questions and bumps that were making their union kind of rocky. Hopefully that big proposal put an end to that ... but seeing them mature and deepen their love is going to be nice."
In an exclusive interview with Good Housekeeping, Annette also gave further details about how her character will drastically change going into season 5. According to the actress, the mayor of Virgin River will focus on her recovery as she gets back into her daily activities within the community.
"Little by little [Hope's] getting better," she told us in November. "The producers want her to get back as much as she can to being the Hope that we knew originally. So, I think that's interesting, but she will be changed. I think it will have changed her for the better."
But that's not all Annette revealed about her character's trajectory. While Hope will still have the qualities viewers loved about her from previous seasons, the actress shared she will be a softer demeanor while healing from her car crash back in season 3.
"I think she is going to be more empathetic," she revealed. "I mean, she's still who she is ... [In] season five, she's still dealing with [her injury], but less so ... By the end of season five, you're going to see pretty much how she's going to be."
How can I watch and stream Virgin River season 5?
Unfortunately, it's going to be a little while before Virgin River season 5 will premiere on Netflix. But that doesn't mean you can't catch up on seasons 1 through 4 in the meantime.
If you're a new subscriber to Netflix, you can try a 30-day free trial before choosing plans that start at $6.99 a month. If you're familiar with the streaming site, all you need to do is click on the show's page on the Netflix official site or the Netflix app to stream from wherever you are.
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