Sweet Magnolias took a sombre turn in season four with the unexpected departure of original star Chris Klein, who played Bill Townsend from day one.

WARNING: This article contains spoilers from Sweet Magnolias.

Sweet Magnolias season four has finally landed, but why did Bill Townsend actor Chris Klein leave?

Heartwarming Netflix drama Sweet Magnolias had been missing for the past couple of years, so when it came out that the Sherryl Woods series would be making a comeback for season three, subscribers couldn’t wait to get their teeth into the new episodes.

Bill Townsend (played by Chris Klein) didn’t make it easy for everyone during his time in Serenity, having cheated on Maddie Townsend (JoAnna Garcia Swisher) and struggled to make a go of it with Noreen Fitzgibbons (Jamie Lynn Spears).

So, at the end of series three, he chose to relocate to Texas to get a fresh start and be closer to his parents.

While it was thought that Bill was going to return for season four, in the second episode, Practical Dreams, Bill’s mom Bonnie Townsend (Judith Ivey) showed up to tell Maddie: “It’s Bill. He’s dead”, explaining that he had a fatal heart attack.

Netflix Sweet Magnolias: Bill Townsend was the first husband of Maddie Townsend who he cheated on in season one. ( 
Image:
NETFLIX)

Why did Chris Klein leave Sweet Magnolias as Bill Townsend?

Bill may have left in season three, but it was thought that he would return at some point in season four after spending time with his parents in Texas.

His off-screen exit has led some to believe that perhaps actor Klein was no longer available to take part in filming Sweet Magnolias, and this was written out as a result, but this isn’t the case.

Showrunner Sheryl Anderson explained that the creators decided to kill Bill, stating that they wanted to “turn the ship 90 degrees.”

Anderson told Glamour: “We love Chris, and Chris loves the show, so it was really, really hard to say, ‘Hey, Chris, we want to take the show in a different direction, and we need this cataclysmic event to shake up everybody.’

Sweet Magnolias season four: Bill Townsend’s mom Bonnie Townsend showed up in Serenity to tell Maddie that Bill had died. ( 
Image:
NETFLIX)
“Because it’s his death that makes all our adults, and especially our men, question what they’re doing with their lives. That theme of ‘tomorrow isn’t promised’.

“You get to a certain age, and when a friend of yours, who’s your age, dies, it’s always too soon, but especially when you are that age.

“You realise time isn’t on our side and think ‘Am I doing what I want to do? ‘Am I with the person I want to be with? What other changes do I need to make in my life?’

“We wanted to just kind of turn the ship 90 degrees. It was so hard to tell him because we all love him, and he loves the show.

“But he understood and took one for the team because it allowed us to tell stories that we wouldn’t have had had an entrée into otherwise. It was story with a lot of sadness.”

As of yet, Sweet Magnolias season five hasn’t been confirmed by the streamer, and subscribers are eagerly awaiting to find out if there will be more to come following that almighty curve ball for the residents of Serenity.

Sweet Magnolias is available to watch on Netflix.