Rudy Pankow as JJ in Outer Banks and Hudson Brooks
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Rudy Pankow just quietly responded to JJ’s replacement in Outer Banks season five

Drama who?!

Daisy Phillipson
24th August 2026, 17:00
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Following rumours of tension between the Outer Banks cast and JJ star Rudy Pankow, the actor has quietly reacted to his replacement in season five of the Netflix show. 

The fifth and final season landed on the streamer last week, and one of the biggest talking points is the lack of JJ. Pankow’s character was killed off by his biological father at the end of season four, and even though there were hopes for his potential return, it didn’t happen. 

This only fuelled speculation that there were issues between Pankow and Kiara actress Madison Bailey, which kicked off in 2023 when fans noticed some apparent social media drama involving their respective partners.

Pankow was and still is dating photographer Elaine Siemek, while Bailey was in a relationship with Mariah Linney. According to reports at the time, Pankow, Siemek and Bailey attended a cast dinner, after which Bailey and Linney reportedly unfollowed Siemek, who unfollowed them in return, and Pankow then unfollowed Linney. Confused? This TikTok explains it all:

@denaesfilms

THE AUDIO SAYS IT ALL!! #madisonbailey #rudypankow #mariahlinney #elainesiemek #obx #outerbanks #drama #fyp #jiara #kiaracarrera #jjmaybank #greenscreen

♬ What The Fu – wtf – SiLLy ViRaL

That wasn’t the end of the rumours, as fans later became convinced body doubles had been used for JJ and Kiara’s romantic scenes in season four. And some even suggested that the alleged tension was the reason JJ was killed off. 

But let’s not get it twisted: the Outer Banks creators themselves have insisted the plan for JJ’s death was in the pipeline from the beginning.

None of the cast or crew have ever confirmed there were issues with Pankow and vice-versa, and after the stunt double speculation, a source even told People in 2024 that there was no feud between Pankow and Bailey. 

Rudy Pankow has now reacted to his Outer Banks replacement

Whatever did or didn’t happen behind the scenes, Pankow has now quietly acknowledged the show’s final chapter by reacting to a post by Hudson Brooks, the actor who plays a younger version of JJ in Outer Banks season five. 

You see, Pankow doesn’t return for any newly filmed scenes, but there are flashbacks. And one particularly emotional montage shows a young Kiara and JJ during their childhood. 

Brooks takes over the role for these scenes, and what fans have paid the most attention to is the fact that the young star is now followed by Pankow on Instagram. This is particularly noticeable given Pankow no longer follows Bailey or Sarah star Madelyn Cline.

What’s more, in an earlier post about Brooks’ role, Pankow took to the comments section with the iconic Spider-Man Pointing meme to reference the two canonical JJs. And it’s not a one off interaction, as Pankow has also been liking posts about Brooks taking on the role.

In short, Pankow might not be involved in season five of the show, but he isn’t afraid to show his support for the actor stepping into his shoes.

His interaction has garnered plenty of support, with one fan writing, “Oh Rudy Pankow you literally are the kindest and nicest and most perfect person in the world. I love him with everything I have.” Another said, “Rudy probably made him so excited, so sweet.”

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Featured image credit: Netflix/Instagram/@hudsonbrooksofficial