The series, based on the novels by Sherryl Woods, premiered in 2020 

NEED TO KNOW

• JoAnna Garcia Swisher shared a touching farewell following the news that Sweet Magnolias has ended after five seasons
• “How do you say goodbye to something that became so much more than a job? Seven years. Five seasons. A million tiny moments that somehow became a whole life,” she wrote on Instagram
• The Netflix series, based on the novels by Sherryl Woods, premiered in 2020 

JoAnna Garcia Swisher is saying goodbye to Sweet Magnolias. 

The actress, 47, spoke out following the news that the Netflix show has ended after five seasons. 

She shared a video of highlights from her time on the series with the caption, “How do you say goodbye to something that became so much more than a job? Seven years. Five seasons. A million tiny moments that somehow became a whole life.” 

Garcia Swisher went on to express that she felt supported by the show during difficult moments in her life. 

“Sweet Magnolias came into my world during a chapter that held some of my deepest loss and, somehow, some of my greatest joy. I lost both of my parents during those early seasons, and in a time when I wasn’t always sure how to keep moving forward, Serenity gave me somewhere to go. These people gave me somewhere to belong,” wrote the actress, who portrayed Maddie Townsend in the series. 

“They made me laugh when I was sure I had forgotten how. They let me be sad when I needed to be. They showed up. Again and again and again. And maybe that’s what I will carry with me most,” she continued. 

The Reba alum praised the show’s hopeful messages and her colleagues.

“To every single person who made this show, and every single person who watched it, loved it, shared it, and found a little piece of themselves in Serenity…thank you,” she wrote. “You will never fully know what you gave me. Five seasons. Seven years. One really, really beautiful chapter of my life. I’m not quite sure I’m ready to close it. But I am so incredibly grateful I got to live it.”

Garcia Swisher concluded her message with, “Pour it out.”

View this post on Instagram

The actress also reflected on her years in Sweet Magnolias with a tribute on her Rolling Clover blog. 

“Seven years ago, I walked into Serenity and into the life of Maddie Townsend,” she wrote. “I knew I loved the story. I knew I understood these women. I understood friendship that feels more like family. I understood starting over when the life you thought you were going to have suddenly looks very different. I understood loving people fiercely, raising children, making mistakes, trying again, and figuring things out as you go. What I didn’t know was how much I was going to need all of it.”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Later in the post, Garcia Swisher shared a special message to the show’s fans.

“You showed up from all over the world. People from places I have never been and may never get to go somehow found this tiny little town in South Carolina,” she said. “You watched these women and saw yourselves. When we met you out in the world, you told us about your friendships, your divorces, and your children. Your second chances. Your losses. Your moms and dads. Your chosen families. Your own versions of margarita nights around kitchen tables. You told us that you felt seen. But what I hope you know is that you made us feel seen, too.”

Sweet Magnolias actor Chris Medlin, who played Isaac Downey, shared his own tribute on Instagram.

“The people, the people, the people! That’s what will always make Sweet Magnolias so special,” he captioned a set of photos. “Thank you to this team of creators, our showrunner, writers, and producers over at Netflix for trusting me with this adventure.”

Medlin, 36, explained that he was an offstage understudy and swing on Broadway when he booked the show in 2019. 

“The past seven years and five seasons of this show are something I will treasure forever,” he continued. “This Serenity family has been with me through innumerable chapters and you have truly changed my life. Five seasons! A number 1 show! We spent fifteen weeks in the top 10! That’s crazy!! And it’s because of all of you tuning in! I wish I had a more nuanced and seismic word than gratitude for what I’m feeling right now.”

View this post on Instagram

Dion Johnstone, who starred as Erik Whitley, shared photos of himself on the Sweet Magnolias set as he bid farewell to the series. His Instagram message emphasized the show’s devoted fans.

“Sweet Magnolias is complete, and before anything else I want to talk to you,” he wrote. “You stopped me in airports and grocery stores and parks to tell me what this town meant to you. You came onto these posts season after season and told me what you saw in Erik. Some of you found us this year and went straight back to the beginning. I have never gotten used to any of it, and I hope I never do.”

Johnstone, 50, continued, “That was the whole job. Bringing some joy and some tears into your homes. To have served you in that way has been a privilege I do not take lightly.”

View this post on Instagram

He closed his message by saying he is “sad to see this world end” but “grateful beyond measure to have lived in it.”

“Serenity is still there whenever you need it,” Johnstone wrote.

In her tribute, Jamie Lynn Spears, who played Noreen Fitzgibbons, shared personal reflections on what landing a role on Sweet Magnolias meant to her at the time as she was juggling motherhood and her career.

“Maddie was in middle school, & Ivey was a little baby, still breastfeeding when the producers were just crazy enough to give this insecure but hopeful young mama a chance, and little did they know they were actually giving a part of myself ‘life’ again, a part of myself I desperately needed and it healed me in ways that allowed me to grow as an actress, but most importantly as a person and a mother,” Spears, 35, wrote.

She continued, “I was given the gift of being able to provide for my family, doing something I was proud of, surrounded by people I respected and loved while creating something we all valued. I owe it all to each and every person who loved Serenity, and the people who made it what it was.”

Sweet Magnolias, based on the novels by Sherryl Woods, aired from May 19, 2020, to June 11, 2026.

The show followed three lifelong friends — Maddie, Dana Sue (Elliott) and Helen (Headley) — as they lifted each other up while juggling relationships, family and careers in the small Southern town of Serenity.

Deadline was the first to report that Sweet Magnolias had been canceled. The show’s writers seemingly confirmed the cancellation with a statement on the series’ official Instagram account.

“All grand adventures must eventually end,” the Sept. 18 post read.

Netflix recently announced that Garcia Swisher will continue to work with Sweet Magnolias showrunner Sheryl J. Anderson to adapt the Lauren Edmondson novel Ladies of the House.

#JoAnna #Garcia #Swisher #Shares #Farewell #Sweet #Magnolias #Netflix #Ends #Series #Fully #Gave