When Virgin River season 4 premiered on Netflix last summer, there was a lot to take in. 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 that he has a grandson and a new physician coming to town, we were definitely invested.
Naturally, fans are 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 info, cast updates, spoilers, and more:
When is the release date for Virgin River season 5?
Mark your calendars, because Virgin River season 5 will debut on Netflix on September 7, 2023. The news was announced in mid-July, via a surprise post the show's social team uploaded on the series' Instagram. What's more, fans will be thrilled to learn that the 12-episode season will not only be broken into two parts, but Deadline reported that the final two episodes will be branded specifically for the holiday season.
"The moment you’ve ALL been waiting for … Drumroll please," read the caption. "Virgin River season 5 will be streaming on Netflix September 7th! I repeat, September 7th! Better yet… There will be a part two 😉. Our HOLIDAY episodes will be released on November 30th. Get excited y’all."
The news of Virgin River season 5's premiere date happened two months after the streamer made the surprise announcement in mid-May that the show was renewed for season 6.
While the show didn't explicitly share this info online, some of the cast members revealed their excitement on Instagram. In a video uploaded on the social media platform, Colin Lawrence (who plays John "Preacher" Middleton) expressed his gratitude to the folks who continue to support the show.
"Hey y'all, just wanna share with you some exciting news," he said in the clip on May 17. "Just got word that we have been picked up for a season 6! ... Wanna thank y'all for so much love. Gonna bring some great stories your way. Oh, I'm excited!"
Colin wasn't the only one thrilled by this upcoming prospect. Annette O'Toole also posted an announcement on Instagram, adding a picture of a rose as a way to usher in the news. What's more, she revealed the show will start filming after the WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) settle the ongoing writers' strike.
The style of a double announcement isn't necessarily a shock for viewers, as the Netflix show green lit season 5 at the same time as season 4. Martin Henderson posted a photo from the season 5 filming set to Instagram last summer.
"Jack’s back!" he wrote in July 2022 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!!!! 😀😀🎉🎉."
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 Melinda "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 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 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 kicked off! Production 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 in August 2022.
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 Instagram wrote on September 1.
In an October 2022 video, 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 Instagram. "A few BTS moments to tie you over till season 5 makes it’s way to @netflix next year … "
When Virgin River wrapped filming in late November, the show's 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 2022. “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 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 2022, Annette 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 said in November 2022. "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 told us. "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."
As for what to expect from season 5, Netflix dropped an official logline and first look photos, per People. According to the report, the new installment "features surprising new relationships, a shocking break-up, a difficult court trial, a heartbreaking goodbye, and a wildfire that threatens the town, bringing some people of Virgin River together while tearing others apart."
If that doesn't make people excited to tune in on September 7, we don't know what else will!
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.
As the entertainment and news associate editor for Good Housekeeping, Adrianna (she/her) writes about everything TV, movies, music and pop culture. She graduated from Yeshiva University with a B.A. in journalism and a minor in business management. She covers shows like The Rookie, 9-1-1 and Grey's Anatomy, though when she’s not watching the latest show on Netflix, she’s taking martial arts or drinking way too much coffee.
