It was a sunset marked by star power, a singing boy band and thousands of screaming fans of "Hawaii Five-0."
For the fourth year, the cast of the state’s most celebrated TV show dressed up to walk a red carpet on the sand and say mahalo to fans who had come to see the crime drama’s Sunset on the Beach premiere.
The outdoor event Thursday at Queen’s Surf, hosted by CBS, has become a tradition on the fall TV calendar. Fans come from all over the world to get an advance screening of the season’s first episode, which is something that doesn’t typically happen with TV shows. Honolulu police estimated the crowd at 8,000.
"It’s very unique," said executive producer Alex Kurtzman. "If you are going to do ‘Hawaii Five-0,’ you have to bring it back to the beach and the people you make the show for. It’s the greatest thing ever. The fact that they are letting us do it here is the best part."
Australian actor Alex O’Loughlin, who stars as the show’s leading man, Steve McGarrett, said he’s always amazed at the Sunset on the Beach reception. This year’s crowd was as boisterous as ever, with fans lining the red carpet five deep.
"I get to this thing every year and I’m gobsmacked," he said. "People have come from all over the world."
Co-star and "Five-0" love interest Michelle Borth was equally amazed.
"To me it seems like it is far bigger than last year," she said. "Oh, my God. It’s wonderful."
Part of the draw was undoubtedly the presence of the Jonas Brothers, who gave a free concert immediately following the screening
Youngest brother Nick Jonas, 21, an aspiring actor, has been in Hawaii this week to shoot an episode of "Five-0" and looked a bit tired. He and brothers Kevin and Joe kept their red-carpet presence to a minimum to preserve their voices.
None of their fans followed suit, however. Every announcement of the Jonases’ progress toward the event, from simply getting in the limo at their hotel to walking the red carpet, drew enormous cheers.
"Hawaii has a very warm, welcoming way of doing things," Nick Jonas said. "It’s pretty incredible."
On "Five-0" he plays a computer hacker.
"Everybody has been really amazing and making me feel very welcome," he said. "I’m looking forward to my last day and my big scene."
The episode airs tonight at 8 on CBS.
Some of the fans staked out spots on the sand Wednesday night, but Barbara Rathmann, 62, of Chicago got there at about 5 a.m. Thursday — good enough to snag a front row to the action. There were already 100 other people there, she said.
Rathmann said she learned she had to get to the site early to get a good spot when she attended the Season 2 Sunset on the Beach premiere two years ago. One of the reasons she came back was because of all the friends she made at the event.
"What’s nice is we get to see the stars, but it’s really nice to see them enjoying the fans," she said.
"Five-0" executive producer Peter Lenkov arrived around 11 a.m. to hand out Liliha Bakery Cocopuffs to the devoted.
"He tweeted he would give people who were here early a treat, and he passed them out personally," Rathmann said. "He made us feel appreciated."
