Outer Banks Season 5 Cast: List Of Characters Not Returning After Season 4 Finale

The fifth and final season of "Outer Banks" — which centers on a group of young treasure hunters (and their adversaries) as they search for Blackbeard's amulet and Blue Crown — will look different after the murder of Pogue leader JJ (Rudy Pankow) by his sociopathic father, Chandler Groff (Tony Crane), in the "Outer Banks" Season 4 finale. But is he the only character not in Season 5?

According to Tudum, every main character who survived Season 4 is back for Season 5. Jon B. (Chase Stokes), Pope (Jonathan Daviss), Kiara (Madison Bailey), Topper (Austin North), Sarah (Madelyn Cline), Rafe (Drew Starkey), Cleo (Carlacia Grant), and Sofia (Fiona Palomo) are returning to grapple with the ways that JJ's death will affect them.

A couple of recurring "Outer Banks" characters have also been confirmed to have more screen time in Season 5. Groff (Crane) has been promoted to a series regular, as has Deputy Shoupe (Cullen Moss). With that said, there are a few notable characters from "Outer Banks" Season 4 who didn't make it to the final season.

JJ's murder means Rudy Pankow is sitting out "Outer Banks" Season 5. Following Season 4, Pankow humbly bid farewell to the beloved treasure hunting show. "I want to leave the cast and crew with the biggest thank-you," he told Netflix's Tudum in 2024. "It's been such a pleasure to come to work. This is by far the biggest thing I've ever done in [my] experience, and to have this as my start is a start of a lifetime. I'm going to miss it." 

While some "Outer Banks" fans are holding out hope that Pankow could appear in some creative capacity (such as a flashback), he isn't a confirmed returning cast member.

Like JJ, Lightner (Rigo Sanchez) died during the Season 4 finale of "Outer Banks." Lightner was a Lupine Corsairs, a group of treasure hunters/mercenaries who served as adversaries to the Pogues. Lightner was killed by Pope as revenge for Lightner murdering Captain Terrance (Terence Rosemore), the paternal figure of Pope's girlfriend, Cleo, in Episode 4.

But while Lightner isn't returning for Season 5, Tudum has confirmed that in addition to grieving JJ, Pope's arc will center around the emotional fallout of the killing.

JJ wasn't the only person that Groff murdered in Season 4 of "Outer Banks," preventing their return in Season 5. He also slaughtered Omar, a member of the Lupine Corsairs whom he was working with early in the season. Omar's body was discovered during Episode 2, but it wasn't until Episode 7 that Groff was revealed as the culprit. Groff also murdered Wes Genrette (David Jensen), the man who tasked the Pogues with finding Blackbeard's treasure.

Finally, Groff also shot and killed Hollis Robinson (Brianna Brown), the real estate developer who was working with him to secure money to help develop Goat Island. As with the other victims, Groff betrayed her, further cementing himself as a heartless killer.

Fans can watch Season 5 of "Outer Banks" exclusively on Netflix on August 20, and check out other shows to watch if you like "Outer Banks."