‘9-1-1: Lone Star’ Fate Revealed for Season 4

9-1-1: Lone Star will return for a fourth season, Fox announced Monday during its upfront presentation for advertisers. Surprisingly, Fox was not prepared to announce a renewal for the original 9-1-1 series, as well as its long-running medical drama The Resident. 9-1-1: Lone Star features Rob Lowe and Gina Torres.

“We are in good-faith negotiations [on 9-1-1 and The Resident],” Fox Entertainment CEO Charlie Collier told reporters Monday, reports Deadline. “Based on the long history with 20th Television, I think we are in pretty good shape. We adore [co-creator and EP] Ryan [Murphy] and are so pleased that Lone Star is locked and loaded.”

Over the weekend, Deadline reported that Fox was hoping to announce Season 6 renewals for both 9-1-1 and The Resident before Monday’s upfront presentation, but it did not pan out that way. Renewal talks for both shows are more complicated than they were in the past since 20th Television is no longer under the same corporate umbrella as the Fox network. Fox executives also focused on renewing bubble shows ahead of no-brainers like 9-1-1 and The Resident.

Sources told Deadline Saturday evening that “all signs” pointed to Fox and 20th Television, now owned by Disney, reaching a deal on the two dramas, but those efforts didn’t pan out. Still, the two sides are “not far apart on financial terms” and the deals should close soon. 9-1-1 has been Fox’s most-watched scripted series since it debuted, while The Resident has been a steady performer as well.

9-1-1: Lone Star wraps up its third season Monday night. The show stars Lowe as Owen Strand, a former New York City firefighter captain who related to Austin, Texas. Torres joined in Season 2 as Tommy Vega, an EMS replacement captain. Lone Star also features Ronen Rubinstein, Sierra McClain, Jim Parrack, Natacha Karam, Brian Michael Smith, Rafael L. Silva, Julian Works, Brianna Baker, Kelsey Yates, and Skyler Yates.

Fox has high hopes for the future of 9-1-1, which it sees as the crown jewel of its scripted slate. Fox Entertainment President of Entertainment Michael Thorn told Variety the franchise is “one of the gold standards in all of television.”

“So far, it feels like this franchise can go the distance like a [Grey’s Anatomy] or a Law & Order or something in that wheelhouse,” Thorn said. “That’s our hope and belief in what this team has done with these shows.” Thorn said the network would “love” another 9-1-1 “when the time is right.”

However, it would not be possible to have all 9-1-1 shows air on one night if a third is created since Fox only airs two hours of national primetime programming each night. “Could a potential third series be the bridge in the beginning? Or is it paired with either 9-1-1 or Lone Star?” Thorn told Variety. “All of these opportunities are things we’re discussing.”