More than a year after CBS endedNCIS: Hawai’i, a cast member posted an update regarding the show’s former set, which is likely to frustrate fans who were previously upset over its cancelation. CBS nixed the police procedural series from its programming schedule a week before its season 3 finale was to air. Consequently, the last episode ofNCIS: Hawai’iseason 3 doubled as its series finale. Many viewers were disappointed about the cancelation, sharing their frustrations on social media and through petitions to save the show. Unfortunately, their attempts were unsuccessful.
Jason Antoon, who starred as Ernie Malik inNCIS: Hawai’i, shared a video on hisXaccount revealing what the Hawaii Film Studio in Honolulu looks like today(in June 2025). The post’s caption reads,“Hawaii Film Studios - Empty and full of weeds,“which just about describes the set’s desertion. As some might know, CBS canceled theNCISoffshoot partly due to budget concerns. Filming on location was expensive for the network. As a result,CBS cutNCIS: Hawai’ifrom its lineupahead of the 2024–2025 broadcast TV season, one of the reasons leading to the production studio’s vacancy.
What Jason Antoon’s Video Of NCIS: Hawai’i’s Former Set Means For The State’s Film Industry
Hawaii Is No Longer Home To Any Network TV Show
FormerNCIS: Hawai’icastmemberJason Antoon’s video of the deserted Hawaii Film Studio displays the harsh reality of the state of Hawaii’s film industry(at least, when it comes to TV). As one can see from Antoon’s social media post, the production studio isn’t exactly thriving. Years ago, many TV series used to use the Hawaii Film Studio to film parts of their episodes that didn’t require on-location shoots. Now, it has clearly been neglected since many networks have decided that producing their shows there has become too expensive.
For the first time in decades, the Hawaii Film Studio is currently not hosting a TV series.CBS canceledNCIS: Hawai’iin April 2024, which severely hurt the studio because it was one of its few remaining TV productions. More than a year later, the lot is pretty much empty, signaling thatHawaii’s film industry is in jeopardy more than ever before.
Our Take On Hawaii’s Dying Film Industry
NCIS: Hawai’i Is Only 1 Of Many Hawaii TV Shows Canceled As Of Late
After CBS controversially endedNCIS: Hawai’iin 2024, the Hawaii Film Studio was still home to one network TV show —Rescue: HI-Surf. Before that, the production studio hostedHawaii Five-O(the original and the reboot),Magnum, P.I.(both iterations),Lost,Last Resort, and more. Plus, many movies, like50 First DatesandBlue Crush, were filmed there. Now thatFox has canceledRescue: HI-Surfafter only one seasonin 2025, though, zero TV productions currently utilize the Hawaii Film Studio. WithoutNCIS: Hawai’i,Rescue: HI-Surf, or any other show, it seems like Hawaii’s dying film industry couldn’t be saved.
