Much to the dismay of the show’s loyal followers, The Unit was cancelled by CBS in May. The series’ viewership had declined in its later years but, despite being preempted several times, still attracted 9.67 million viewers in season four.
The Unit was supposedly being seriously considered to continue in first-run syndication but the deal didn’t work out, likely because of production costs. Sadly, while the military drama and Dennis Haysbert, Regina Taylor, Robert Patrick, and Scott Foley will be around in syndication for years to come, we won’t be seeing season five of The Unit.
It turns out that the writers had a full plan for year five which Executive Producer Shawn Ryan was expecting to be the show’s last. He pitched the storyline ideas to the CBS execs but ultimately they weren’t interested.
At the recent TCA press tour, Ryan shared with The Futon Critic what would have happened. He said, “It was going to be a whole new show in the sense that we were going to be training some young people, Bob was going to be training some people for a whole new organization. Jonas was finally going to be seeing his run end.”
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Ryan continued, “The final season was going to be, I figured the fifth season was going to be the last… It was going to be a long, sort of final mission for Jonas. He’s not medically cleared, Mac has to go in and sort of change the medical records so that Jonas can keep on [going on missions]. We had a whole thing planned, it was going to be good.”
Of the cancellation, Ryan points to CBS’ last-minute decision to save NBC’s discarded Medium series. If things had been reversed and The Unit “had been owned by Paramount and Medium had been owned by 20th Century Fox, we’d be making the fifth season of The Unit right now. I don’t know how else to say that.”
What do you think? Do the plans for season five sound like a good way for the military drama to finish?
Image courtesy CBS.
I’m about 3 episodes away from finishing season 4. I don’t event want to finish due to no season 5 cause I don’t know what else to watch that compares to this show. So bum to hear no season 5.
The unit is such an amazing series I loved it!! CBS must allow a 5th season ,it was so amazing I finished all 4 seasons in less than 2weeks just one more seasons all we asking 4!!!!
give us a season five come on do it pleas
My dad found out about the show late last year. He ended up buying every season on DVD and every night we’d watch the show for hours. We ended up watch every episode of all 4 seasons within 2 weeks! My dad is 41 and we’ve been talking about how we can’t wait for season 5. Now, to find out there is no season 5 really disappoints me, let alone my dad. This is the only time me and my dad really ever spent time together. I was really hoping for season 5… I wonder if there’s a way us… Read more »
after watched pilot i have liked it so much i bought all seasons on Blu-Ray. i finished last episode 10 min. ago, and i was trying to find something about 5th season and i found out that wont be any 5th season. I feel cheated ;/ They should have some obligation for fans CBS looks like they dose not care about solid fan base what The Unit have, very disappointing
please, bring this show back, i mean, even if you don’t have many more things to tell to fill a hole season, this can’t be a worthily end… please! alex, italy
I finished the 4 series in 1 week!!now u can’t imagine what I’m going through….c’mon u fellas @ cbs,play the rest!!!!!!!
This is an amazingly written, produced and acted show – someone should buy it, and make the 5th, 6th and 7th seasons! There is SO much more that could be done here, the characters are so complex that this easily has another couple of seasons – 24 went on forever, and that was NO WAY as good as this, similarly Prison Break, someone please have the common sense to realise that this needs to be made!! If I had the money, id do it myself!!! 🙂 Neil, UK.
It was through my mothers illness that we discovered The Unit. My mother loves Dennis Haysbert, his voice in the Allstate commercials calms her. So in my search to f ind other things that he was featured in I discovered a wonderful show called the Unit. We love it even her nurse. Please bring the show back and find a way to bring Jector nack.
Bring it back it was a great show and needs a proper ending
c’mon cbs! what are you waiting for? bring the unit back, it is the only good tv show that you had, what were you guys thinking C’MON!!!!
Bring it back!!! Just was in a bad time slot!!! We need more action and suspense than these stupid reality shows. Everyone is getting burned out on the crap. We need action and cliffhangers. Such as the unit 24 lost prison break etc! Tv is getting lamee
Im sad just finish watching all 4 seasons, wow what a great series. Please bring out season 5………..!!
Such a GREAT series…. Very disappointed that there is no Season 5… Please put it out on DVD!!! Cbs should have cancelled their stupid singing and dancing shows instead..
I have finished all 4 seasons within 2 weeks, going hours at a time; I want to see this final season on dvd!