Keck's Exclusives
: When Will Alex O'Loughlin Return to Hawaii Five-0?

How many episodes of Hawaii Five-0 is Alex O'Loughlin going to miss because of his stint in rehab? —Kelly, Birmingham, Alabama

Good news. Just one full episode will be McGarrett-less. When Alex went to rehab in March, citing treatment for prescription pain medication due to a shoulder injury, the Hawaii Five-0 team did have to do some last-minute scrambling. But according to executive producer Peter Lenkov, Alex's absence fit in well with the story arc he'd already mapped out. "Things happen; that's the business," shrugs Peter. "We rewrote it." 

Alex appears briefly in the April 9 episode, when we learn that McGarrett suspects Joe (Terry O'Quinn) lied to him about being Shelburne. "He ends up leaving a 'Dear Danno' letter before taking off to find the real Shelburne," explains Peter.

Unfortunately, the actor is absent entirely from the next original episode on April 30, the big NCIS: Los Angeles crossover with guest appearances from Chris O'Donnell and LL Cool J. When McGarrett reappears on the May 7 episode, he will have located his arch enemy, Wo-Fat, and toss him in the slammer.

Alex also appears in the action-packed May 14 season finale, which begins with the death of a familiar face and also sees the returns of Terry O'Quinn, Tom Sizemore and William Baldwin. And for the record, Peter assures me Alex is "doing great." Good to hear. What's 5-0 without McGarrett?  

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