Angry ‘Nashville’ Fans Lash Out At Connie Britton Over Rayna Jaymes’ Death
Nashville killed off Connie Britton’s much-loved country star character Rayna Jaymes in last night’s episode of the CMT drama – and viewers are not happy.
After the February 23 episode of the show saw Rayna shockingly die after slipping into a coma, “angry” fans took to social media to lash out at the series of the major character death, slamming Connie for quitting Nashville and letting Rayna die after fans campaigned to have the show return.
A number of Nashville viewers slammed the CMT show and Britton, who’s portrayed Jaymes since the show first began in 2012, on Twitter, putting both Connie and the series on serious blast after they campaigned hard to have the series brought back to life after ABC initially canceled the country music drama last year.
“Really angry such BS,” Twitter user @gillibugz tweeted out following Rayna’s shocking death in the most recent episode of Nashville, titled “If Tomorrow Never Comes.” “We save Nashville only for Rayna to die! #speechless. What about Deacon? You killed love CMT.”
“What a shock, I’m so angry I don’t think I can watch Nashville anymore,” @DubogueSherry tweeted out to Connie after seeing Jaymes die, while @ChrissyYandolli wrote on the social media site of Rayna’s death following Nashville’s reprise, “Ugh are you kidding me!!!!! Now I’m angry the show even came back….. #nashvillecmt.”
Other Nashville fans even opted to take serious aim at Connie following Rayna’s death, blasting the actress and accusing her of not being as invested in playing Jaymes in the country drama as she once was once the show moved from ABC to CMT last year.
“You could tell her heart wasn’t in it anymore, every cast member campaigned with fans and she was silent,” @WildAngel92 tweeted of Britton returning as Rayna in Season 5 on CMT, while @drummindj_j wrote to Connie on the social media site, “How could you do this to all of us #nashies who fought so hard for CMT to pick show up? U & Deacon were the reason we fought!”
Notably, Connie Britton, who has appeared on Nashville as Rayna Jaymes since the drama first began in 2012, appeared to stay more tight-lipped than her co-hosts last year when it came to campaigning to get Nashville back on the air and also reportedly refused to sign on for another full season after it was announced that the series would return on the country music network.
A number of Connie’s co-stars campaigned for Nashville to continue on with another network after ABC announced that it would no longer be continuing on with the series after five seasons, urging fans to voice their support for another network to continue on Rayna’s story, though Britton stayed a little more silent.
But while viewers are now accusing the actress of not exactly being as excited to play Jaymes on the show as she was when Nashville first began five years ago, Britton did pay very special tribute to Rayna on social media after shocked viewers saw Jaymes die on the CMT drama.
Britton took to Instagram to share a heartfelt message for fans and Jaymes following the character’s shocking death, thanking Rayna for her “magic” and “dignity.”
“You made Rayna,” Britton told Nashville fans, who certainly made no secret of their anger following Jaymes death on social media. “You supported her and loved her and gave her inspiration just as she was able to inspire you. You were the energy source, the power behind her heart and soul and life. Rayna lived for you.”
“From the depths of my heart, I thank you, for her and for me,” the actress then continued on behalf of herself and Jaymes amid the Nashville drama. “Long live Rayna Jaymes. #RIPRayna #NashvilleCMT.”
Connie also appeared to respond to fans lashing out over Rayna’s death a day after the shocking episode of Nashville aired, hitting back at fans slamming her and the show by posting a snap with former co-star Charles Esten with the caption, “Love this man. Love y’all.”
Nashville Season 5 is set to continue – without Rayna Jaymes – on CMT on Thursday nights.
What do you think of Rayna’s death on Nashville? Do you think viewers are right to be angry at Connie Britton after campaigning for the show to be brought back, only to see Rayna James die?
[Featured Image by Rich Polk/Getty Images for IMDb]
