The Deleted Scene From Hawaii Five-0 That Would Have Changed Everything
The "Hawaii Five-0" reboot came to a satisfying conclusion with the aptly titled series finale episode, "Aloha." Aloha means hello and goodbye in Hawaiian. While it may mean goodbye for now for the beloved action series, the finale suggested a new beginning for our hero throughout the series, Steve McGarrett, played by Alex O'Loughlin. O'Loughlin was actually planning on leaving after Season 10, which was the real reason for the show ending.
The episode title also references the fact that the finale begins with a scene that leads to the killing of McGarrett's father (William Sadler) by Victor Hesse (James Marsters), which happens in the pilot of the series.
Following an emotional goodbye scene, McGarrett is joined by a surprise returning cast member as they sit down for a plane ride to their next adventure. Michelle Borth returned to the show for the finale to play Catherine Rollins, McGarrett's on-again, off-again love interest. Borth was a series regular in Seasons 3 and 4, and she went on to make sporadic guest appearances after that. Rollins is revealed to have solved the cipher message McGarrett received from his lawyer for his late mother.
The showrunners weren't sure until the final moment if the show would be renewed for Season 11
Where is the plane going in the finale? The audience never finds out. When TVLine asked showrunner Peter M. Lenkov where McGarrett and Rollins are headed, he said, "I never thought about it. I thought that the idea that the show started with him landing on the island, ended with him leaving the island, would be the right thing. And again, he's not leaving forever! He's just leaving to find some peace."
While the ending reflects the cyclical nature of life, "Hawaii Five-0" fans almost got a very different series finale. TVLine reported that multiple scenes were cut prior to air. That's because the showrunners learned while filming the last episode of Season 10 that there would not be a Season 11. Uncertain if the show was going to be renewed or not, they shot cliffhangers for the episode that were meant to be addressed in Season 11.
The original cliffhanger ending involved Adam instead of McGarrett
These cliffhanger scenes were cut when the producers were informed that "Aloha" would serve as the final episode of the "Hawaii Five-0" reboot. One such trimmed scene would have changed everything about the conclusion of the show.
In the deleted cliffhanger, Adam (Ian Anthony Dale), a confidential informant to Five-0, is stopped at Five-0 Task Force headquarters by a top member of the Yakuza, Ryo (Michael Hagiwara). Adam was working for the Yakuza during the final season of the show and he ultimately betrayed them. Ryo warns Adam to watch his back because the Yakuza are aware of what he has done.
Choosing to end the show with McGarrett and Rollins reuniting as a couple seems like a more fitting conclusion to the show over the abandoned cliffhanger. The scene would have segued nicely into a Season 11, but without a renewal, it's an unnecessary dangling thread.