The fourth season of the American television musical drama series Nashville, created by Callie Khouri, premiered on September 23, 2015, on ABC and concluded on May 25, 2016. The show features an ensemble cast with Connie Britton and Hayden Panettiere in the leading roles as two country music superstars, Rayna Jaymes and Juliette Barnes. The season consisted of 21 episodes and was the last season to air on ABC before the series moved to CMT.
As with season three, the episodes are named after songs from a variety of country artists, including Lucinda Williams ("Can't Let Go"), Conway Twitty ("'Til The Pain Outwears The Shame"), Waylon Jennings ("Stop the World (And Let Me Off)"), Patty Loveless ("How Can I Help You Say Goodbye"), Reba McEntire ("How Does It Feel To Be Free") and LeAnn Rimes ("What I Cannot Change").
Production
On May 7, 2015, Nashville was renewed for a fourth season by ABC. The writers began work on the season on May 26, 2015. This season will receive a $10 million incentive package from the state of Tennessee, and other local groups, more than the Season 3 incentives — which totaled $8 million. Filming began on July 17, 2015. The third episode was shot on August 7, 2015. Filming for Season 4 was completed on April 4, 2016.
Cast
The third season was the last to feature Eric Close as a series regular; he will no longer appear in the show as a main cast member. On July 25, 2015 Riley Smith was cast as Markus Keen, for a season long arc. Keen will be the newest Highway 65 artist, and Rayna promises to help him strip down his sound. When he realizes how much the label needs his album to be a hit, he begins to control Rayna. On October 13, 2015, it was announced that Hayden Panettiere would be temporarily leaving the series to receive treatment for post-partum depression; at the time she had completed seven episodes. Panettiere returned to the set on January 8, 2016 to begin work on the fourteenth episode.