It still stings for a lot of people. You spend four years watching a group of "aliens" try to navigate the high-desert heat of New Mexico, only to have the rug pulled out right before the finish line. When The CW officially swung the axe in May 2022, Roswell season 5 went from a hopeful renewal to a ghost of a project. It wasn't just a random cancellation, though. It was part of a massive, industry-shifting bloodbath that saw almost half of the network's scripted slate disappear overnight.
If you're looking for a secret, filmed-but-unreleased season, I have to be the bearer of bad news: it doesn't exist. There are no secret episodes sitting in a vault at Warner Bros. Discovery. But the story of why we never got that fifth year—and what it was supposed to look like—is actually more interesting than the typical "ratings were low" excuse.
The Nexstar Takeover Killed Roswell Season 5
To understand why we aren't watching a fifth season right now, you have to look at the boardroom, not the writers' room. For years, The CW operated on a very specific, almost strange business model. They didn't really care if people watched the shows live on TV. Honestly, they didn't. They made their money through a massive output deal with Netflix and international distribution. As long as a show like Roswell, New Mexico had a dedicated fanbase that would binge it later, it was "profitable" for the parent companies, CBS and Warner Bros.
Then Nexstar Media Group entered the chat.
They bought a majority stake in the network and basically said, "We want to make money on actual broadcast television." That changed everything. Suddenly, the "Prestige Teen Drama" era was dead. Shows like Legends of Tomorrow, Batwoman, and Legacies were all chopped. Roswell season 5 was caught in that specific crossfire. It wasn't that the show failed creatively; the platform it lived on simply stopped existing in the way it used to.
The Ending We Got vs. The Ending We Wanted
The season 4 finale, "How It's Going to Be," had to do a massive amount of heavy lifting. Because the writers knew a cancellation was possible—though not guaranteed—they had to write a "swing" ending. It’s that awkward middle ground where you try to satisfy fans while leaving a door cracked open just in case.
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Max Evans heading into the liminal space to save his home planet Oasis was a huge cliffhanger. It felt like a setup for a cosmic road trip. In a world where we got a fifth season, the show likely would have moved away from the dusty streets of the Crashdown Cafe and into something much more sci-fi. We’re talking full-on planetary exploration. But instead, we got a goodbye that felt a bit rushed. Liz Ortecho stayed behind, the couple was separated by galaxies, and the audience was left wondering if they ever found their way back to each other.
What Was Actually Planned for the Story?
Showrunner Christopher Hollier hasn't been shy about what he had in mind. In various interviews following the finale, the creative team hinted that a potential Roswell season 5 would have focused heavily on the "Oasis" side of the mythology.
Think about it. We spent four seasons hearing about this dying world. We saw glimpses. But we never lived there.
- The Quest for Max: The primary arc would have likely involved Liz, Michael, and Isobel finding a technical or supernatural way to bridge the gap to Oasis.
- The Evolution of Powers: We saw the characters' abilities grow every year. By the end, they were basically gods. A fifth season would have had to ground them again, probably by introducing threats that made their alien DNA look like child's play.
- The Wedding: Let's be real—the fans wanted the wedding. The "Malex" (Michael and Alex) wedding in the finale was a huge high point, but "Echo" (Evans and Ortecho) fans were left wanting.
It’s kinda tragic. The show was finally leaning into the "Science" part of Science Fiction, moving past the small-town romance tropes and into something expansive.
The Ratings Reality Check
We have to be honest here. Even without the Nexstar buyout, the numbers weren't exactly screaming "hit." By the time season 4 rolled around, the show was averaging around 300,000 to 400,000 live viewers. In the 90s, those numbers would get a show cancelled in a week. In 2022, they were... okay. But they weren't "survive a corporate merger" okay.
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The show survived as long as it did because it performed exceptionally well on digital platforms. People loved to stream it. But Nexstar wanted local news and cheap unscripted content, not expensive alien prosthetics and desert location shoots.
Is There Any Hope for a Revival?
In the current streaming climate? It’s tough.
We are living in an era of "content contraction." Netflix is cutting back, HBO Max (now just Max) is nuking finished projects for tax write-offs, and Disney+ is slowing down. The idea of another network picking up Roswell season 5 two or three years after the fact is a long shot. The sets are gone. The costumes are in storage or sold. The actors—Jeanine Mason, Nathan Dean, Michael Vlamis—have all moved on to other pilots and projects.
However, the "Roswell" IP is actually quite resilient. Remember, this was already a reboot of the 1999 series. The characters of Liz, Max, Michael, and Maria exist in the Melinda Metz books, which means the rights are always floating around. We might not get a continuation of this specific version, but I'd bet my car that in ten years, someone else will try to reboot it again. It’s a classic story: girl meets boy, boy turns out to be an intergalactic refugee, chaos ensues.
Why Season 4 Functions as a Series Finale
If you're a new viewer binging the show on Netflix, don't let the "cancelled" tag scare you off. Unlike some shows that end on a total "Fade to Black" cliffhanger (looking at you, Legends of Tomorrow), Roswell, New Mexico actually provides a sense of closure.
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Michael and Alex got their happily ever after. That’s huge. For a lot of the audience, that relationship was the emotional core of the show. Seeing them married and happy in the desert provided a level of finality that most cancelled shows don't get. Max's departure is bittersweet, sure, but it's also a sacrifice that fits his character arc. He started as a guy hiding in the shadows and ended as a leader willing to face his origins to save his people.
Actionable Steps for Fans and Collectors
Since a new season isn't appearing on the horizon, here is how you can actually engage with the series and fill that void.
1. Dive into the Melinda Metz Books
If you haven't read the original Roswell High book series, do it. They are very different from the CW show—more "90s YA" and less "adult conspiracy thriller"—but they provide a different perspective on the characters.
2. Support the Cast’s New Ventures
Keep an eye on Jeanine Mason’s upcoming projects. She’s been incredibly active in the indie film circuit and voice acting. Supporting the actors is the best way to show studios that the Roswell fanbase is still active and "bankable."
3. The Fan Fiction and Archive Community
Honestly, some of the best "Season 5" scripts I've ever read are on AO3 (Archive of Our Own). The community there has written thousands of words detailing exactly how Max gets back from Oasis. If you need closure, that's where you'll find it.
4. Physical Media is Key
In an era where streamers delete shows to save on residuals, buy the DVDs. If you love a show, don't trust a cloud to keep it for you. Having the physical discs ensures you can revisit the series even if it disappears from Netflix.
The era of the "The CW Alien Drama" has closed for now. It was a weird, messy, beautiful run that lasted longer than many expected. While Roswell season 5 remains a "what if," the four seasons we have are a complete testament to a specific moment in TV history where sci-fi and soap opera blended perfectly in the New Mexico sun.