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The following contains spoilers from the April 30 episode of MacGyver aka its Season 5 and series (at least on CBS) finale.
MacGyver has folded open his last Swiss Army knife.
The CBS reboot came to a close on Friday night, capping a five-season run. And while the timing of the show’s cancellation (announced barely three weeks ago) did not allow for a proper series finale, at least one accomodation was made to honor the lead character’s past and strongly hint at his future.
To briefly recap Friday’s episode: Mac and Riley (played by Lucas Till and Tristin Mays) went missing for 24 hours, and had no memory of what happened to them during that disappearance. It was discovered that they had been experimented on, since the nanobots still in their system apparently allow for a degree of mind control. Worse, Matty (Meredith Eaton) came to realize that none other than the U.S. government was complicit in the nanobot technology’s testing and morally icky implementation.
By episode’s end, Mac and the team had exploded a cache of nanobots that were to be dispersed among a D.C. crowd, then used hyperbaric chambers/risky oxygen-management techniques to “kill” the nanobots still inside Mac and Riley. Finally, just as Mac was about to quit the team altogether, Matty announced that Phoenix was severing all government ties and would be self (aka Russ)-funded.
TVLine spoke with Monica Macer, the showrunner for this 15-episode swan song, about tweaking her “season” finale, confirming a romantic endgame, the well-laid plans for Season 6 and much more.
TVLINE | Let’s start off on a happy note. What are you most proud of from your time on MacGyver?
You know, I’m most proud of being able to shoot this show in the middle of a worldwide pandemic, because it took so much effort on the part of everyone. From our executives at CBS to the cast and the crew literally putting their lives on the line every day, masking up and wearing all the PPE…. People don’t understand the sheer force of will it takes to shoot something during the middle of a pandemic.
And this isn’t a small, quiet drama with two people in a room talking; there are huge action set pieces in addition to really great character work. It’s a moving, undulating train that’s flying down the track at a thousand miles an hour, so to be able to do that in the middle of a pandemic is really a gift — and that can only be pulled off by the kind of amazing cast and crew like we have at MacGyver. It’s truly mind-blowing.
TVLINE | Now, how exactly did you hear that you wouldn’t be coming back for Season 6? And on a scale of one to 10, how shocked were you?
I got the call from the network execs, the head of the network, and I was surprised. I don’t know if I can quantify it. I guess I was shocked….
TVLINE | So, like an eight?
Yeah, probably a seven or an eight. I knew that in the past, MacGyver had been a bubble show, but we were so proud of the work that we did this season and so hopeful, really hopeful, that we were going to get another shot. But I also understand that there are so many decisions, high-level decisions, being made at the network and studio level that factor into this type of decision. So, we’re saddened but also really grateful that we had the opportunity to finish the [nine] episodes that were outstanding from last season and incorporate them into this season — which was no small feat on a storytelling level — and be able to finish production.
TVLINE | After that call from CBS, do you call Lucas Till…?
After that call, they were gracious enough to give me a few hours to call everyone, and I was able to talk to every single cast member, all of our EPs, and as many of the department heads as I was able to reach in that time. We didn’t want anyone to read it online, because we had become a family over the course of the season and I wanted to make sure that people weren’t blindsided by it.
TVLINE | At that point, are you able to tweak the ending of the season at all?
That’s a really good question. We got the news right as I was getting ready to go into a second edit session on what was supposed to be our season finale, and I had to switch gears and make all the calls, so we stopped. There’s a moment in the finale when Mac is coding on the table and we go into his subconscious mind state, and that was where I was like, “We need to give something to the fans,” because now this is a series finale, and we shot a season finale. So, we decided to do flashes of the team and the people that were closest to Mac. And there’s a very clear nod to the fans with the Riley flashes — if you count the number of flashes and how that sequence starts and ends, Mac knows, in his heart, who he’s supposed to be with ultimately. And that’s Riley.
TVLINE | As a season finale, was Mac always coming back from that? Because I was thinking you were either going to tease that he was “dead,” or he would wake up and the experience would have sapped him of his smarts, and that was going to be your cliffhanger.
Oh, interesting. No, we had always planned that [Mac and Riley] would go through this procedure that basically destroys the nanobots in their body, and next season we wanted to play a Manchurian Candidate storyline, potentially, where the research led by Marcato and the rogue scientists in the government was going to get activated by a villainous force. That’s one of the storylines that we were circling.
There were a couple of other episodes that we had already had sort of mapped out for next season. Like, we wanted to do a Black Hawk Down episode where we pick up the thread of Desi’s fiancé who had died — or so she thought, but we find out he’s a POW at the top of the episode and we go on a mission.
TVLINE | Knew it!
Yeah, I think fans kind of knew it, too, and that was going to be our way to break up Mac and Desi (Levy Tran) and open the door for Riley. Honestly, at one point that was what we were planning for this finale, but after a lot of conversations with the studio, it felt like a Desi episode and not a Mac episode. So, we thought we would push that to probably the first or second episode of Season 6, so that the door is open for Mac and Riley.
TVLINE | So you did see a scenario where Mac got together with Riley, and Desi stayed on the team. Because I often wondered how that would look.
Of course. Yeah, because Desi would then get back together with her ex-fiancé, Evan, and Mac and Riley, they’re the hero couple. That was always the endgame for us, we just didn’t know the end was coming at the end of this season! We were laying the track for that with the episode where they go to the Indian wedding and you find out about Desi’s former fiancé.
TVLINE | Who was your dream casting for the fiancé?
You know, there were so many names that were bandied about, I can’t honestly remember… I would have to look through my emails.
TVLINE | But “tall, dark and handsome”?
Yes, definitely. Definitely, definitely.
TVLINE | Were you glad that you got in a visit with Bozer’s (Justin Hires) parents, before the end snuck up on you?
Yes, I am so proud that we got to meet Bozer’s parents and see the good stock that he’s raised from and who raised Mac. And I just was so, so proud that Ernie Hudson and Wendy Raquel Robinson could come out and do those parts. That was a dream casting—
TVLINE | Great casting.
And Wendy and Justin, they just clicked, they had this banter. You could see that she was definitely his mother. We also loved the fact that Ernie was so grounded and so kind. He sort of had the key to help Mac get over his grief with losing his parents, but also that was the beginnings of Mac sleuthing and problem solving, doing investigative work.
TVLINE | I’m of the school of thought that you had at least one more rug to pull out from under us regarding Jack (former cast member George Eads), that maybe he wasn’t truly and sincerely dead.
I read a lot of that online, but that was really never the conversation in our writer’s room or from you know the studio. I noticed that fans thought that that was the case, but that wasn’t anything that we discussed for this season.
No, we were so focused on really giving the fans what they wanted and deserved, which was the Mac and Riley ending. And in the future, there were some great episodes. I’m also really proud of the casting of Sofia with Camilla Arfwedson, and with Alexandra Grey as Parker…. There was a story with Russ (Henry Ian Cusick) and Sofia we had planned, to go find a treasure. That was another Easter egg that we had planted in the Indian wedding episode. We were going to go on a big, Romancing the Stone treasure hunt right after Mac and Desi broke up, and it was going to be basically Mac, Russ and Bozer on a mission, the “three dudes,” and they run into Sofia, who’s also after the treasure.
Also, for Meredith [Eaton]’s character, when the whole idea of the nanobots is resurrected and she finds out who’s behind it, Matty was going to put Riley undercover in that organization — unbeknownst to Russ and Mac. Riley was going to be the “boots on the ground” to find out the truth behind the “Manchurian Candidate” issues that were happening with Mac, and that was ultimately going to bring Mac and Riley closer — and that’s how we were going to get them together.
TVLINE | To be clear, when you talk about this Manchurian Candidate storyline, Mac himself would have been somewhat activated?
We were toying with that idea.
TVLINE | There was, what, one nanobot in his bloodstream that we didn’t quite get…?
Yeah, exactly.
TVLINE | How many episodes into Season 6 would Mac/Riley fans have had to wait for that first kiss? Three?
We were thinking, yeah, two or three. In the second episode we’d probably do Black Hawk Down and go find Desi’s fiancé, and then either do the kiss at the end of [Episode] two or in three.
TVLINE | What was on tap for Bozer?
We were going to have him firmly entrenched in the [Phoenix] lab as “the gadget guy,” and have him come up with this high-tech gadgetry that would play in the field, which we felt was true to his character and what has been laid out in the past. We had also planned that his mom was going to come back to L.A. and run for congress. We had all of these great plans and these episodes already sort of in the hopper, ready to go for Season 6, inspired by this amazing cast and this amazing show.
TVLINE | You mentioned Meredith a moment ago. Since she filmed so much remotely amid the pandemic, I wondered: Did she get a proper goodbye with the cast?
You know what, we did a Zoom the day after we found out the news, with the entire cast. It was about an hour-and-a-half and everyone was expressing their gratitude and their feelings for one another, so she got a proper goodbye in that sense.
TVLINE | The #SaveMacGyver fan campaign, among other things, raised money to put up a few billboards lobbying for Season 6. Did you see that?
Yes, it’s crazy! I love it. I love our fans so much. I’m really humbled by their passion and their dedication and their can-do attitude. It’s very “MacGyver,” and I’m so touched and so moved that they would do that.
TVLINE | Should they have any hopes for more MacGyver, anywhere?
You know, that’s a question that they should be asking CBS — and I think they are [asking CBS].
TVLINE | Because unlike, say, Lucifer [a Warner Bros. TV show that went from Fox to Netflix], MacGyver is a CBS-owned show. It’s not a third-party product that, like, Hulu can easily pick up.
I mean, I guess they could. Anything is possible. But again, that’s a decision for the studio.
Want scoop on MacGyver (I have leftovers!), or for any other show? Email InsideLine@tvline.com and your question may be answered via Matt’s Inside Line.
Great episode! I’ll miss MacGyver. Hopefully they come back for a limited series to wrap up some of the things mentioned in the article.
I’m so disappointed in CBS for pulling the plug on this show at the last minute…. particularly after reading what the plans were for the future. I’ve been hoping that Mac and Riley were endgame since the beginning. The fact that the network gave them absolutely no way to get there, cancelling the show after it had already been filmed, is unfair to its fan base.
Hi TVLine thanks for posting this about this fantastic bunch of people! I only started watching this show in January 2021 and it helped me through this pandemic in more ways than one. It shouldn’t be ending and that is a fact! I don’t know how the writers manage to come up with all the unique story lines never mind the absolutely fantastic acting of the cast portraying these wonderful characters. #SaveMacGyver 📎📎📎🙏🙏
It’s not CBS fault it’s the producers and writers fault . I mean this was the fifth season and yet they did not have them together . No wonder the ratings were low people get tired of the games and stop watching . They get the blame not CBS .
Sorry but that’s just an asinine comment since the writers and producers work for CBS. If CBS was so unhappy with the writers/producers, they could’ve found other writers/producers who they hoped would do better. Ultimately everyone falls under the CBS umbrella but it’s the execs who make the decisions to greenlight new projects or cancel old ones so yes…it IS CBS’s fault.
I don’t know about you but I think you mean the average person may have gotten tired. As a mostly Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Conspiracy Fan myself, if they had done more “holy grail” type stories like the original did and targeted the more Fantasy/Conspiracy audience (Which CBS HATES BTW – so YES, it Is in fact CBS’s fault for not allowing the show to be more like the original and appeal to/target a nerdy crowd and instead asking for a more grounded modern drama for the CSI masses) then the target audience would have been fine with a long wait.
Just look at the Stargate SG-1 audience, TEN seasons, TWO made for TV movies, and the ship was even teased/hinted in Stargate Atlantis and Stargate Universe. The writers played “games” with the Sam/Jack ship without “getting them together” and the audience held.
Get jack back,,,,,, HE DIDNTb die ,,,,,’,,,,,!!!!{ MAC&Riley ) junk Desi!!!!!!
SCOPED 2THE MAX!!!!!!
My origanil of saying. Watch everything
Exactly many fans had been waiting for Mac and Riley to find their way to each other and to cancel before doing so is just so unfair to all the fans, around the world, watching and waiting!!
CBS RECONSIDER ITS WITHIN YOUR POWER!!!
Bring it back on Paramount+!
It was so obvious that they were planning a Desi’s dead fiance isn’t really dead storyline. I’m glad we get to know that Mac and Riley would be together if CBS didn’t suck so much.
Loved this interview! Awesome questions. Loved the answers. Team #RileyMac. Thank you for bringing us this interview, Matt!
Frankly, I can’t believe anyone TRULY felt this episode was in the excellent category. It was so average at best. It seemed rushed. AND if the writers felt like they made it clear that Mac—at the end—knew he was meant to be with Riley then they are totally deleted. Heck, Mac didn’t even have a hug or some meaningful look with Riley once he woke up. But he did hug Desi. The show—to me—could not have been more of a disappointment even if the show would have been renewed for another season.
I take it you work for CBS. It’s the only way to explain what you just said. And of course the episode felt rushed, they had to end the series in 40 minutes after it was already shot. That ending was not meant to be a series finale.
I really looked forward to Macgyver every week. I can’t believe you ended it. You left fans so disappointed with CBS. Bring it back! There is so much that could be done. CBS, this program was better than any “reality” show, which I personally would never watch. Please rethink this. It was not anywhere near to be ended. It’s too bad you don’t listen to the fans & what they want. After all, we are the ones that make your ratings.
CBS should allow this show to finish properly and allow the fans to see MacRiley bc that is the person that Mac really loved. I rated the show excellent bc I want it to come back, it should. The fans deserved to see Mac and RIley for sure. Whatever we can do as fans we will @SaveMacgyver, @Macgyver
They should have given MacGyver at least one more season. I thought this season was particularly strong. It’s a shame CBS pulled the plug.
I totally agree. The just left us hanging. Why just drop it suddenly like that
Don’t worry. CBS will probably put in another “reality show” or Dancing with the Stars type show that nobody will ever watch. People I know are tired of that type of show and change channels whenever they come on. MacGyver was always different and, to a degree, educational (even if all the stuff he did probably wouldn’t really work in real life). At least it was entertaining. Reality shows are not.
Totally agree CBS needs to bring back MacGyver .
Actually everything they did science wise was researched and tested. They knew that some people would have to stretch their imagination and think outside the box but the goal was to make everything they did on the show very real and actually applicable (because seriously who is going to always have everything on hand to create what they need, lol). I saw an interview early on where they said they weren’t going to just do stuff and then have it magically work. They wanted Mac to do stuff that would actually work (because of course there would be people saying “that’s not real”) though obviously not that quickly. I remember one episode where Mac is doing his science narration during S1/Ep9 while building homemade fireworks can saying “don’t ever try at home” but they would still work.
strong how?????? every week all fans did was harass the writers on twitter lol
Garbage finale. Ruined the show for me honestly.
It wasn’t supposed to be the finale. If CBS had any brains, they would have given it a last season so they could properly wrap it. Instead with 3 weeks before the season finale, and already filmed, they cancel it. Just stupid.
Its the mediocre Teenage drama and the MacRiley fans that ruined the show.
The episode wasn’t stellar but it was a nice send off. I’m sad to see it go in theory but it was time. There is nothing about the season 6 plans that remotely speaks of the need to continue. Here’s hoping that Lucas Till and the rest of the cast are rolling in job offers. They deserve it.
Point. blank. Period. Some of the MacRiley fans were truly toxic, wouldn’t be surprised if they’re part of the reason it was cancelled. They turned the show and fandom into a weekly “lets bash Desi” competition, it was all about the ship 🙃
exactly! and not only show I watched that was ruined by toxic shippers. Once they started that love triangle show truly went downhill
Preach!
PREACH!!! They became so obsessed with that ship that it absolutely ruined everything.
I agree, whilst the show was OK it was MacGyver in name only but the shippers are killing so many shows because they are so vocal and the writers feel like they have to cater to them.
.
I’ve stopped watching Chicago PD this year because of it, even on this site the cast talk about nothing but the ships when last season’s cliffhanger was an important story that instead got resolved after one episode.
I very much enjoy the story lines and the cast. Someone should pick the show up.
Why!!! Bring it back! They need to come back and not work for the Government. Start it off with a new story line.
Very bittersweet. I really felt they could have easily gone another season. I enjoyed this season more than the past couple of seasons and I’ll miss the story lines that were coming up for all of them. I’m also glad you asked about Meredith Eaton, Matt. I was thinking how sad it was that the cast and crew weren’t able to have a proper goodbye. Best wishes to all of them. I don’t think the show will get a reprisal elsewhere, but we can all still hope.
I hate CBS for canceling MacGyver, I hate CBS for canceling MacGyver with too little notice to end the series properly. I hate CBS for having so little regard for what their fans truly want and appreciate. I hate CBS.
how could once good show went this bad in just one season? I don’t want to be happy it was cancelled, it doesn’t feel right, because people lost their jobs, but I’m glad it’s over. Judging from this article season 6 would be only worse and I would stop watching anyway
Feel the same way. I think this season, with the change of the show-runner off course, the show couldn’t call itself “MacGyver”.
I think it is good in a way – nobody will now connect the show much with the original (whose premise was very different – if not the very opposite, one man who could take care of himself in any given situation.)
Now it just started to be a show about “some” team that works for the govermen.
:)
I didn’t like way it ended, because it left you hanging.
I love MACGYVER, so I’m upset that CBS is cancelling the show.
I think it was a mistake to have MacGyver and Desi have a relationship. It took away from the show. But it would not have been any smarter to be with Riley. He would have needed a very intelligent woman that was not part of Phoenix!
Agreed. However, in my opinion, Desi was a much better choice than Riley. That having been said, I liked some of his other non-Phoenix-Foundation girlfriends quite a bit more than either of them.
I felt like Mac and Desi had nothing in common and fought all the time, which was rather tiring to watch. I know relationships are hard but my god how many times did he have to say sorry to her, even for things that were not his fault. I think people liked the idea of him with Riley because he seemed more himself and less on edge around her. The only girlfriend that I remember him having outside of the Phoenix was Nasha when he went to Africa, maybe I am missing someone.
He had Nikki Carpenter in the first season, she never appeared again though cos the actress went to Chicago PD. That was pre-Phoenix, although they did work together at DXS.
Oh yeah. I guess I forgot about her. She was in like what 3 episodes? I know she went rogue or something, but it didn’t seem like they were still together. Honestly, Nikki and Mac would have been weird at least for me because they kind of look like siblings (blonde hair/blue eyes). The show seemed to always mention that it would be difficult for the characters to be with regular civilians because of the secrecy and dangerous nature of the job.
… And there is the Nikki storyline… I somehow missed the Nikki storyline. She leaves him an object, which is a clue to something she was involved in. I missed the episode(s) where that plays out.
MacGyver was more about the ingenuity of the spirit and science! I wish CBS was willing to invest in this show. I so glad for the revival of the show! Friday night at 8 PM is a tough time slot.
I find it funny how the showrunner is saying that Mac and Riley were the end game whe n in fact, had Tracy Spiridakos been available for the entire run of the series, Angus would have ended up with Nikki Carpenter.
What I’m confused about the cancellation, is that they said this was pretty much the lowest drama on their schedule. Yet SWAT & Seal Team have done worse in ratings and demo.
Great interview. Sounds like season 6 would’ve been awesome, so sad it got cancelled. I’m glad MacRiley is confirmed even though we’ll never see it. Having two shortened seasons in a row really did the show a disservice. Bummer they won’t get one more chance.
Fans were actually clamoring for a Mac/Riley romance? I find that hard to believe, and not only because the actors had very little romantic chemistry between them. It just didn’t seem organic, forcing their relationship.
The one thing I know I wasn’t the only fan clamoring for was bringing Jack back somehow. But I get it, there were probably real-life circumstances which precluded that happening
seriously, i do not see mac/riley together either. where are all these clamoring fans anyway? twitter? (i don’t do twitter)
George Dad’s wanted out for family. No way he was coming back.
they’ve been like sibling for over three seasons, it’s laughable! i’m glad it ended before they made me watch that
Well if they were meant to be siblings, they should have mentioned that in the show like they did with Riley and Bozer. I have three sisters and we do not hug or look at each other like they had them do.
Did they not force the Mac/Desi relationship? She was brought in to protect the team and they immediately put her with Mac. Season 4 starts and we find out they were together offscreen but could not get along, and then they put them back together for what? Did they not know what to do with her character if she was not with Mac?
Last show was episode 94, 6 shy of episode 100, the magic number for syndication. CBS should have had a 6 episode 6th season to wrap things up better.
Love the show
Please renew Macgyver for season 6
It’s typical shows like Macgyver being canceled and crap shows continue
It is not only CBS that cancel good shows
Every network are canceling good shows
So renew Macgyver for season 6 & maybye season 7
Please
We want season 6, 7, etc.,etc. Bring them BACK!!!
Please & thank you👌
I am surprised that MacGyver got cancelled. I thought that it would be renewed for a final season 6 , to wrap up stories properly.
Another network should pickup the series