‘Nashville’ Takes Fans Behind the Scenes of Season 5 [Watch]

Nashville will be back on TV soon enough, but until then, fear not, Rayna Jaymes fans; you’ve got something to hold you over. The show has released a behind-the-scenes look at its upcoming Season 5, which will air on CMT.

The show faced an abrupt end when it was canceled by ABC after Season 4, but was soon picked up by its new network, which is slated to premiere its first episode Jan. 5.

“You can tell when it’s not time, and it wasn’t time,” Charles Esten, who plays Deacon on the show, says about the brief uncertainty.

While some Nashville fans may be nervous about its new home, the cast doesn’t seem worried. In fact, many of the actors are more than happy to bring on the change.

“It kind of feels, in some ways, like a new show,” says Jonathan Jackson, who plays Avery Barkley.

Lennon Stella (of Lennon and Maisy), whose character Maddie Conrad is the eldest daughter of Rayna Jaymes, sees the shift as a good thing.

“Honestly, I think it feels better,” she adds.

Most of the team seems to feel similarly, including Nashville's creator, who notes the new writers and showrunner are great fits.

“The changes that we’ve made have kind of breathed new life into it,” says Callie Khouri, who is also the show's executive producer. “The scenes are going to last a little bit longer, we’re not going to have quite so many characters.”

Check out the video above to learn more about what’s in store for Season 5. Though Will Chase and Aubrey Peeples are not returning, all the main characters are back, despite speculation that Connie Britton, who plays James, may be leaving. She recently addressed those rumors, saying she’s excited about the show's new vibe.

“I don’t know where that stuff came from. It’s kind of crazy the stuff that comes out,” she says. “What I can tell you is, we’re on CMT now. We have amazing writers that I’m so excited about, and it’s going to be the best writing we’ve ever seen on Nashville and probably the best season we’ve ever had.”

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