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Hawaiian Lifeguard TV Show 'Rescue: Hi-Surf' Canceled After 1 Season

Originally posted on SURFER | By August Howell | Last updated May 8, 2025 9:33 PM ET

Rescue: Hi-Surf, the television drama based on the lives of Hawaiian lifeguards on the North Shore of Oahu, has officially been scrapped after one season by Fox. The news was first reported by Deadline.

For fans of the show, it’s an abrupt turnaround. The cancellation comes after the show’s season finale on March 31 and less than a year after it debuted on Fox in September 2024. While the news won’t make waves in the TV landscape, many Hawaiians involved in the production see it as a major blow to the local economy and industry. Hawaii’s tourism department says the show pumped in nearly $32 million to 2,100 cast and crew, most of whom were local to Oahu.

“We right now in our industry here, it’s not dying,” Brian Keaulana, who worked as the series’ water crew director, told Hawaii News Now. “We’re dead right now in the water.”

Keaulana reported thatcompanies are less incentivized to film on Oahu compared to other locations because the island does not have as high a tax credit. Click here to learn more about Hawaii and film production tax credits.

According to Deadline, “While it fits in Fox’s $ 3M-$4 M-an-episode model, Rescue HI-Surf is believed to be at the high end of the range and among the network’s more expensive drama series — despite no big stars in the cast — because it films in Hawaii.”

The series was co-produced by Warner Bros. Television and Fox Entertainment Studios. Warner Bros. is reportedly not even shopping the series elsewhere. Despite no breakout star and a relatively unknown cast, the premiere performed well with 4.7 million Live+Same Day viewers (boosted by a Sunday football audience), according to Deadline. Last month’s season finale had a modest 1.4 million live and same-day viewers. The show averaged 2.8 million total viewers (with delayed playback) according to TVLine.com.

This article first appeared on SURFER and was syndicated with permission.

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