(Credits: Netflix)

Outer Banks fans were left devastated after watching the back half of the show’s fourth season on November 7th, as they saw beloved character JJ Maybank meet his ultimate fate.

Creators Josh Pate, Jonas Pate, and Shannon Burke told Tudum that it was an incredibly hard decision to kill Maybank off, but they needed it to happen to set the stakes for the show’s climactic final season.

Pate explained, “It sets the stage for an epic fifth and final season. We’re planning a story of redemption and a season that embodies the friendship that JJ had come to represent. JJ’s death was a hard but necessary piece of the architecture for the story, and we plan on honouring that as much as we can because we love the character as much as the fans do.”

Rudy Pankow, who played JJ since the show’s debut in 2020, revealed that he embraced what was going to happen to him. He said, “It was emotional, but I think deep down, everyone was on the same page. ‘Let’s make an impact’. And I think we did that.”

For Pankow, JJ’s death at the hands of his biological father, Chandler Groff, made perfect sense because he died saving Kiara, the woman he loves. Pankow believes JJ was always willing to do whatever it took to protect his Pogue family, and this was the natural end point of that dedication.

He explained, “For JJ, he has to judge every moment in his life, if it’s worth it, and I think it’s constantly, yeah, it is for him. Even throughout the pain, and the suffering, and the struggles for JJ, it’s worth it for him to go to that length. He lives his life to the utmost fullest, and I don’t think he regrets any part of it.”

“When I first found out JJ was going to risk it all and not make it, I understood it,” admitted the young star. “And the risks got bigger and bigger, and the stakes got higher and higher.” He even revealed that he was told on his very first audition that JJ is a character who is “loyal to a fault”, so his demise couldn’t have been more fitting.

Exiting a show he’d been part of from the beginning was a bittersweet experience for Pankow, but he was ultimately left with nothing but feelings of gratitude. He said, “I want to leave the cast and crew with the biggest thank-you. It’s been such a pleasure to come to work. This is by far the biggest thing I’ve ever done…and to have this as my start is the start of a lifetime. I’m going to miss it. Thank you for so many fun memories I’ll have for the rest of my life.”

Pankow also had a message to all the people who have made Outer Banks one of Netflix’s biggest hits, and in the process, taken JJ into their hearts. He said, “To all the fans that show so much support and love for JJ, I just want to say thank you. It really did make an impact on me, playing him. It’s been an honour to bring him to life for you guys and it’s been a joy to play him.”