Nashville season 4
Deacon and Rayna in ABC's series Nashville ABC

Filming for Nashville season 4 has started, as fans wait to know more about Deacon's fate.

Writers for the ABC series announced via Twitter that production for the show's fourth season had begun.

Nashville season 3 ended on a major cliffhanger, with Deacon's life hanging in the balance.

The final moments of the episode saw Deacon (Charles Esten) in surgery getting a liver transplant after his sister Beverly (Dana Wheeler-Nicholson) finally agrees to help him. Viewers saw one of the two characters flatline and Caleb (Nick Jandl) taking Rayna (Connie Britton) to one side to deliver some bad news.

Is Deacon dead?

In an interview with TV Line, Laura Benanti, who plays Sadie in the musical drama, talked about Deacon's future on the show.

When asked about Deacon's death, Benanti replied "He's not gonna die. I love Chip [Esten] so much, too. He's such a funny, cool person. If they kill [Deacon], I'm not gonna be okay."

Dee Johnson also told TV Line that a flat line isn't always a sure indicator for death on TV shows.

"Just for the record, a flat line doesn't necessarily mean somebody doesn't get resuscitated," Johnson explained, leaving room for the possibility that Deacon is just fine.

Do you think Deacon will survive? We will have to wait till season 4 premieres to find out.

More about nashville