Chase Stokes bids farewell to Outer Banks final season
Chase Stokes is saying goodbye to John B as Netflix’s Outer Banks wraps its fifth and final season. In a Hollywood Reporter interview, the 33-year-old reflected on health struggles after filming, gratitude for the hit, and next projects — as fans also close the chapter that defined co-stars like Rudy Pankow.
Key Takeaways
- Stokes told The Hollywood Reporter he is closing out his breakthrough Outer Banks role after season 5.
- He said he faced serious post-show health issues, including failing liver and kidney function, before prioritizing recovery.
- Season 5 set an IMDb high for the series, with episodes 9 and 10 scoring 9.0 and 9.1.
- Stokes is moving into directing and a lead role in AMC’s upcoming NASCAR series Thunder Road.
- Forbes reports no season 6, while a prequel titled Kildare remains in early development.
Why is Chase Stokes saying goodbye to Outer Banks now?
Outer Banks has returned for its fifth and final season on Netflix, and Stokes is marking the end of years playing John B. He told THR the series became a global “monster,” quietly ranking among Netflix’s biggest shows for five years with “billions and billions of views.”
The cast’s rise was unusual: much of it happened in a pandemic bubble. Stokes recalled COVID testing, masks, and shooting in freezing weather while pretending it was summer. Fame hit later — including thousands of fans watching them film in Charleston — and he admitted he had a “really hard time” adjusting.
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What did Stokes reveal about his health after wrapping?
Before diving into post-Pogue work, Stokes said he needed time offline. “I’ve been John B more than I’ve been Chase,” he explained, noting he was 33 playing a teen and had to find himself again.
He described deep therapy, regular blood work, and TMS treatment after leaving the show. “My liver was failing, my kidney was failing,” he said, adding his testosterone was “alarmingly low” and that he “probably, unfortunately, wouldn’t have been around much longer” without getting healthy. He now says he feels great “for the first time in a long time.”
How are fans receiving the Outer Banks finale — and what’s next?
According to Forbes, season 5 arrived in one drop rather than a split release. On IMDb it is the only Outer Banks season with two episodes at 9 or above — a 9.0 for episode 9 and a 9.1 for the finale — after early episodes started slower.
Forbes also notes the remaining cast is departing and there will be no season 6, though a prequel, Kildare, set about 20 years earlier, has a script coming together with no cast or release date yet.
Stokes, meanwhile, is prepping his directorial debut I Told the Sunset About You and pushed for a lead in Thunder Road after connecting with the script the way he once did with Outer Banks. He is still processing the bittersweet exit — and, like viewers who grew up with Rudy Pankow and the Pogues, taking in the final stretch of press with gratitude.