Outer Banks Season 4 has just premiered on Netflix, with the fourth season following the Pogues on even more treasure-hunting adventures. And with the new season following the storyline of JJ Maybanks’ real parentage, one of the questions on everyone’s mind had been whether the show would resolve this storyline in a way that meant Rudy Pankow’s exit from the show.
Pankow has played JJ Maybanks since the show’s premiere, one of the main characters of the teen drama, which also stars Madelyn Cline, Chase Stokes, Madison Bailey, Jonathan Daviss, and Carlacia Grant. In the fourth season of the show, JJ finds out that he is not actually a Pogue – a distinction made according to wealth and status – but a Kook because his family is actually pretty rich.
The show also explored why JJ didn’t grow up with his mother, Larissa Genrette, or his father, Chandler Groff. And it did so in a way that made it clear that Groff didn’t actually care about JJ, he only cared about the money. He was, after all, the one who left JJ with Luke Maybanks and paid him to stay silent and pretend JJ was his kid. Luke was as lousy a father as Groff, and abusive to JJ. But at least he never tried to actually kill him. We think.
Because that’s what happens with Groff at the end of Season 4, he tries to get JJ killed a few times and then finally succeeds in doing the deed and stabs his son to death in the final episode. It’s a tragic end for the character, and one fans aren’t convinced will actually stick. But for now, it seems like JJ is done on the show and Rudy Pankow is actually leaving Outer Banks.
Why did Rudy Pankow leave Outer Banks?
Neither Pankow nor Netflix have confirmed this is the end of JJ for good, so you never know. But speculation he could be leaving started thanks to an interview he gave Backstage promoting the season. In the interview, Pankow said “I’m so thankful to be in this position…to be working on this craft with these characters. But I know that’s not going to last forever. I’m capable of trusting that it’s gonna be OK no matter how busy I am, or how not busy I am.”
It was enough for the fanbase to explode with speculations that Outer Banks Season 4 would be Pankow’s last, and now with JJ actually dead on screen, that’s sent fans into a tailspin. If we add to that the fact that Pankow made a recent post on his Instagram stories, where he stated “This show has given me so many amazing opportunities to express my craft in so many different ways and it has been an honor playing JJ.”
Speculation over the reasons why Pankow is leaving has been rampant in the fandom, with some suggesting it was related to the treatment his girlfriend, Elaine Siemek has gotten. Others, however, talk of a rift between him and costar Madison Bailey, who plays Kiara, or at least a rift between Bailey’s girlfriend and Pankow’s girlfriend over the fan response to the Jiara ship and the desire to see more of Bailey and Pankow together.
“And how did madison bailey say it was a beautiful ending.. that was beautiful? u just happy rudy leaving bc of y’all weird ass relationship & petty gfs” a fan said, with another one adding, “everyone’s going to go after the showrunners but let’s be honest it was definitely because rudy left the show.” But some fans aren’t even convinced JJ is gone for good. One fan said “guys no this is fine actually ive re-entered the denial stage because they made such a big deal about the blue crown granting you a wish and thats what s5 is gonna be about and the pogue win is going to be they get the crown and then they wish jj alive.”
For now, it seems like Pankow is indeed gone from the show. But shows have lied about bigger things, so there’s that.
Will Outer Banks season 4 be the show’s last?
Netflix has officially confirmed that the show will return for a fifth and final season. Outer Banks has consistently been one of Netflix’s best performers, and Season 4, Part 1 made it to the top of the Netflix Top 10 leaderboard with ease. Considering all of these things, it made sense for Netflix to bring the show back for one last season to finish up the storyline the way creators Josh Pate, Jonas Pate, and Shannon Burke had planned. Netflix has been quick to cancel shows recently, but it has also been quick to renew proven hits, including The Night Agent and The Diplomat.
Outer Banks appeals to a younger audience than the last two, and it is an audience that Netflix is very much interested in keeping, which is likely why we’re getting an Outer Banks Season 5. And with a Season 5 confirmed the question of what’s going to happen to JJ Maybanks becomes even more important. For now, it seems like Rudy Pankow’s JJ will not return to the show. But storytelling-wise, there’s still a lot of story to tell, so it’s hard to blame fans for holding on to that last bit of hope.
