911: Lone Star season 5 starts with a train wreck of a plot

911: Lone Star season 5 is a highly anticipated release for fans who've had to contend with the show's absence from broadcast for over a year. The FOX series unexpectedly was bumped to a Fall 2024 season launch due to the Hollywood strikes in 2023.

The move by the network came as a surprise since the procedural's peers all shifted to the midseason instead of missing an entire TV year. However, its delay also came down to FOX wanting to launch its brand new lifeguard drama Rescue: HI-Surf at the same time in the hopes the veteran show can give it a boost.

Now that 911: Lone Star is getting ready to debut its new season, we can finally see what will be on offer and whether or not it'll be well worth the wait. We've reached the point in the summer where productions are starting to pick back up and promos are set to be released. The show falls in the latter category as FOX has come out the gate with a first look at the premiere. You can check it out in the tweet below:

Rob Lowe teased the train derailment storyline back in May when speaking to People. We're in for a three episode arc with the wreck. And, though it's not fair to do so, fans of both 911: Lone Star and the flagship, which had its first successful run on ABC in the 2023-2024 TV season, are going to be comparing premieres. After all, 911 had its own three episode event for its seventh season though theirs took place on a cruise ship taken over by pirates.

Here's what Lowe had to say about the train set:

"I mean, first, you just can't believe how big it is. I was taking pictures on the set, videos on the set, and sending that to everybody I know, but you just can't believe that this is not a $200 million movie - that's what it looks like. That we're able to do that and deliver it is like, as an actor and a producer, that's the thing I'm really really proud of. I put that up against anybody. It's impossible to do what we do on a weekly basis, but we do it, and I love that people love it."

It seems we're in for an action packed premiere event but, understandably, viewers will be going in wary of a possible cancellation. Rumors have been flying around that the show's fifth season run will be its last. While stars like Ronen Rubenstein have dispelled this narrative and urged fans to tune in when the show returns in September, Sierra McClain's exit from the show with no indication that she'll make an appearance in season 5, has fans concerned. As does FOX Entertainment CEO Rob Wade's lack of a definitive answer on whether viewers can count on a season 6.

"Lone Star was not on the schedule this year because of the strike, and we’re really looking forward to getting it back on in the fall. We are excited about the new season. We’re going to see how that goes as always, and then make decisions on that about the future of that franchise. But at the moment, we’re very focused on that being a launchpad for a new show, Rescue HI-Surf, we’re excited to have it on the schedule."

Granted, it's par for the course to be waiting on renewal news. More often than not we don't get word on if a series is coming back until it is close to finishing or actually finished its most recent season. But with the other network's greenlighting their tentpoles for new seasons and both CBS and NBC signaling that their big franchises are secure, it's no wonder fans are hoping to hear that even without 911, Lone Star will continue to have a home on FOX, especially when it's unknown if the spin-off would be able to jump to ABC if cancelled.

But if we're to take Owen Strand's words in the promo as a message from the network, season 5 isn't the end of 911: Lone Star, it's only the opening act. Stay tuned to Hidden Remote for more news and coverage.