diff --git a/Cargo.lock b/Cargo.lock
index e9a0529..1c6cce3 100644
--- a/Cargo.lock
+++ b/Cargo.lock
@@ -3093,6 +3093,7 @@ name = "television-screen"
 version = "0.0.21"
 dependencies = [
  "color-eyre",
+ "devicons",
  "ratatui",
  "rustc-hash",
  "serde",
diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index a92627d..d890fcf 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -56,6 +56,7 @@ readme = "README.md"
 
 [workspace.dependencies]
 directories = "5.0.1"
+devicons = "0.6.11"
 color-eyre = "0.6.3"
 lazy_static = "1.5.0"
 tokio = { version = "1.41.1", features = ["full"] }
@@ -104,7 +105,7 @@ copypasta = "0.10.1"
 
 [dev-dependencies]
 criterion = "0.5.1"
-devicons = "0.6.11"
+devicons = { workspace = true }
 
 [[bin]]
 bench = false
diff --git a/crates/television-channels/Cargo.toml b/crates/television-channels/Cargo.toml
index b1f53f7..544b4b8 100644
--- a/crates/television-channels/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/television-channels/Cargo.toml
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ television-derive = { path = "../television-derive", version = "0.0.21" }
 tracing = { workspace = true }
 tokio = { workspace = true, features = ["rt"] }
 clap = { workspace = true, features = ["derive"] }
+devicons = { workspace = true }
 directories = { workspace = true }
 color-eyre = { workspace = true }
 serde = { workspace = true }
@@ -27,7 +28,6 @@ lazy_static = { workspace = true }
 toml = { workspace = true }
 rustc-hash = { workspace = true }
 
-devicons = "0.6.11"
 ignore = "0.4.23"
 strum = { version = "0.26.3", features = ["derive"] }
 regex = "1.11.1"
diff --git a/crates/television-previewers/Cargo.toml b/crates/television-previewers/Cargo.toml
index 57657a2..7ebb37a 100644
--- a/crates/television-previewers/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/television-previewers/Cargo.toml
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ television-channels = { path = "../television-channels", version = "0.0.21" }
 television-utils = { path = "../television-utils", version = "0.0.21" }
 
 syntect = { workspace = true }
+devicons = { workspace = true }
 tracing = { workspace = true }
 tokio = { workspace = true }
 color-eyre = { workspace = true }
@@ -24,7 +25,6 @@ lazy_static = { workspace = true }
 rustc-hash = { workspace = true }
 
 parking_lot = "0.12.3"
-devicons = "0.6.11"
 regex = "1.11.1"
 nom = "7.1"
 tui = { version = "0.29", default-features = false, package = "ratatui" }
diff --git a/crates/television-previewers/src/previewers.rs b/crates/television-previewers/src/previewers.rs
index 3595259..132a703 100644
--- a/crates/television-previewers/src/previewers.rs
+++ b/crates/television-previewers/src/previewers.rs
@@ -1,6 +1,11 @@
 use std::sync::Arc;
+use std::time::Duration;
+use std::time::Instant;
 
+use cache::PreviewCache;
 use devicons::FileIcon;
+use parking_lot::Mutex;
+use rustc_hash::FxHashMap;
 use television_channels::entry::{Entry, PreviewType};
 
 pub mod basic;
@@ -20,6 +25,7 @@ pub use env::EnvVarPreviewerConfig;
 pub use files::FilePreviewer;
 pub use files::FilePreviewerConfig;
 use syntect::highlighting::Style;
+use tracing::debug;
 
 #[derive(Clone, Debug)]
 pub enum PreviewContent {
@@ -47,7 +53,6 @@ pub struct Preview {
     pub title: String,
     pub content: PreviewContent,
     pub icon: Option<FileIcon>,
-    pub stale: bool,
 }
 
 impl Default for Preview {
@@ -56,7 +61,6 @@ impl Default for Preview {
             title: String::new(),
             content: PreviewContent::Empty,
             icon: None,
-            stale: false,
         }
     }
 }
@@ -72,14 +76,6 @@ impl Preview {
             title,
             content,
             icon,
-            stale,
-        }
-    }
-
-    pub fn stale(&self) -> Self {
-        Preview {
-            stale: true,
-            ..self.clone()
         }
     }
 
@@ -105,6 +101,8 @@ pub struct Previewer {
     file: FilePreviewer,
     env_var: EnvVarPreviewer,
     command: CommandPreviewer,
+    requests: FxHashMap<Entry, Instant>,
+    cache: Arc<Mutex<PreviewCache>>,
 }
 
 #[derive(Debug, Default)]
@@ -132,6 +130,9 @@ impl PreviewerConfig {
     }
 }
 
+const DEBOUNCE_DURATION: Duration = Duration::from_millis(20);
+const REQUEST_TIMEOUT: Duration = Duration::from_millis(200);
+
 impl Previewer {
     pub fn new(config: Option<PreviewerConfig>) -> Self {
         let config = config.unwrap_or_default();
@@ -140,16 +141,54 @@ impl Previewer {
             file: FilePreviewer::new(Some(config.file)),
             env_var: EnvVarPreviewer::new(Some(config.env_var)),
             command: CommandPreviewer::new(Some(config.command)),
+            requests: FxHashMap::default(),
+            cache: Arc::new(Mutex::new(PreviewCache::default())),
         }
     }
 
-    pub fn preview(&mut self, entry: &Entry) -> Arc<Preview> {
-        match &entry.preview_type {
-            PreviewType::Basic => self.basic.preview(entry),
-            PreviewType::EnvVar => self.env_var.preview(entry),
-            PreviewType::Files => self.file.preview(entry),
-            PreviewType::Command(cmd) => self.command.preview(entry, cmd),
-            PreviewType::None => Arc::new(Preview::default()),
+    pub fn preview(&mut self, entry: &Entry) -> Option<Arc<Preview>> {
+        // remove any requests that have timed out
+        self.requests
+            .retain(|e, v| v.elapsed() < REQUEST_TIMEOUT || e == entry);
+
+        // if we have a preview in cache, return it
+        if let Some(preview) = self.cache.lock().get(&entry.name) {
+            debug!("Preview already in cache");
+            return Some(preview);
+        }
+        // if we've already acknowledged the request
+        if let Some(initial_request) = self.requests.get(entry) {
+            debug!("Request already acknowledged");
+            // and we're past the debounce duration
+            if initial_request.elapsed() > DEBOUNCE_DURATION {
+                debug!("Past debounce duration");
+                // forward the request to the appropriate previewer
+                let preview = match &entry.preview_type {
+                    PreviewType::Basic => Some(self.basic.preview(entry)),
+                    PreviewType::EnvVar => Some(self.env_var.preview(entry)),
+                    PreviewType::Files => self.file.preview(entry),
+                    PreviewType::Command(cmd) => {
+                        self.command.preview(entry, cmd)
+                    }
+                    PreviewType::None => Some(Arc::new(Preview::default())),
+                };
+                // if we got a preview, cache it
+                if let Some(preview) = preview {
+                    self.cache.lock().insert(entry.name.clone(), &preview);
+                    Some(preview)
+                } else {
+                    None
+                }
+            } else {
+                debug!("Not past debounce duration");
+                None
+            }
+        }
+        // if we haven't acknowledged the request yet
+        else {
+            debug!("Request not acknowledged, acknowledging");
+            self.requests.insert(entry.clone(), Instant::now());
+            None
         }
     }
 
diff --git a/crates/television-previewers/src/previewers/command.rs b/crates/television-previewers/src/previewers/command.rs
index 6db4197..9e6c03e 100644
--- a/crates/television-previewers/src/previewers/command.rs
+++ b/crates/television-previewers/src/previewers/command.rs
@@ -16,7 +16,6 @@ pub struct CommandPreviewer {
     cache: Arc<Mutex<PreviewCache>>,
     config: CommandPreviewerConfig,
     concurrent_preview_tasks: Arc<AtomicU8>,
-    last_previewed: Arc<Mutex<Arc<Preview>>>,
     in_flight_previews: Arc<Mutex<FxHashSet<String>>>,
 }
 
@@ -53,9 +52,6 @@ impl CommandPreviewer {
             cache: Arc::new(Mutex::new(PreviewCache::default())),
             config,
             concurrent_preview_tasks: Arc::new(AtomicU8::new(0)),
-            last_previewed: Arc::new(Mutex::new(Arc::new(
-                Preview::default().stale(),
-            ))),
             in_flight_previews: Arc::new(Mutex::new(FxHashSet::default())),
         }
     }
@@ -64,17 +60,17 @@ impl CommandPreviewer {
         &mut self,
         entry: &Entry,
         command: &PreviewCommand,
-    ) -> Arc<Preview> {
+    ) -> Option<Arc<Preview>> {
         // do we have a preview in cache for that entry?
         if let Some(preview) = self.cache.lock().get(&entry.name) {
-            return preview.clone();
+            return Some(preview);
         }
         debug!("Preview cache miss for {:?}", entry.name);
 
         // are we already computing a preview in the background for that entry?
         if self.in_flight_previews.lock().contains(&entry.name) {
             debug!("Preview already in flight for {:?}", entry.name);
-            return self.last_previewed.lock().clone();
+            return None;
         }
 
         if self.concurrent_preview_tasks.load(Ordering::Relaxed)
@@ -86,21 +82,14 @@ impl CommandPreviewer {
             let entry_c = entry.clone();
             let concurrent_tasks = self.concurrent_preview_tasks.clone();
             let command = command.clone();
-            let last_previewed = self.last_previewed.clone();
             tokio::spawn(async move {
-                try_preview(
-                    &command,
-                    &entry_c,
-                    &cache,
-                    &concurrent_tasks,
-                    &last_previewed,
-                );
+                try_preview(&command, &entry_c, &cache, &concurrent_tasks);
             });
         } else {
             debug!("Too many concurrent preview tasks running");
         }
 
-        self.last_previewed.lock().clone()
+        None
     }
 }
 
@@ -149,7 +138,6 @@ pub fn try_preview(
     entry: &Entry,
     cache: &Arc<Mutex<PreviewCache>>,
     concurrent_tasks: &Arc<AtomicU8>,
-    last_previewed: &Arc<Mutex<Arc<Preview>>>,
 ) {
     debug!("Computing preview for {:?}", entry.name);
     let command = format_command(command, entry);
@@ -170,8 +158,6 @@ pub fn try_preview(
         ));
 
         cache.lock().insert(entry.name.clone(), &preview);
-        let mut tp = last_previewed.lock();
-        *tp = preview.stale().into();
     } else {
         let content = String::from_utf8_lossy(&output.stderr);
         let preview = Arc::new(Preview::new(
diff --git a/crates/television-previewers/src/previewers/files.rs b/crates/television-previewers/src/previewers/files.rs
index f560368..a7f14bc 100644
--- a/crates/television-previewers/src/previewers/files.rs
+++ b/crates/television-previewers/src/previewers/files.rs
@@ -28,7 +28,6 @@ pub struct FilePreviewer {
     pub syntax_set: Arc<SyntaxSet>,
     pub syntax_theme: Arc<Theme>,
     concurrent_preview_tasks: Arc<AtomicU8>,
-    last_previewed: Arc<Mutex<Arc<Preview>>>,
     in_flight_previews: Arc<Mutex<FxHashSet<String>>>,
 }
 
@@ -72,9 +71,6 @@ impl FilePreviewer {
             syntax_set: Arc::new(syntax_set),
             syntax_theme: Arc::new(theme),
             concurrent_preview_tasks: Arc::new(AtomicU8::new(0)),
-            last_previewed: Arc::new(Mutex::new(Arc::new(
-                Preview::default().stale(),
-            ))),
             in_flight_previews: Arc::new(Mutex::new(HashSet::with_hasher(
                 FxBuildHasher,
             ))),
@@ -85,17 +81,17 @@ impl FilePreviewer {
     ///
     /// # Panics
     /// Panics if seeking to the start of the file fails.
-    pub fn preview(&mut self, entry: &entry::Entry) -> Arc<Preview> {
+    pub fn preview(&mut self, entry: &entry::Entry) -> Option<Arc<Preview>> {
         // do we have a preview in cache for that entry?
         if let Some(preview) = self.cache.lock().get(&entry.name) {
-            return preview;
+            return Some(preview);
         }
         debug!("Preview cache miss for {:?}", entry.name);
 
         // are we already computing a preview in the background for that entry?
         if self.in_flight_previews.lock().contains(&entry.name) {
             debug!("Preview already in flight for {:?}", entry.name);
-            return self.last_previewed.lock().clone();
+            return None;
         }
 
         if self.concurrent_preview_tasks.load(Ordering::Relaxed)
@@ -109,7 +105,6 @@ impl FilePreviewer {
             let syntax_set = self.syntax_set.clone();
             let syntax_theme = self.syntax_theme.clone();
             let concurrent_tasks = self.concurrent_preview_tasks.clone();
-            let last_previewed = self.last_previewed.clone();
             let in_flight_previews = self.in_flight_previews.clone();
             tokio::spawn(async move {
                 try_preview(
@@ -118,13 +113,12 @@ impl FilePreviewer {
                     &syntax_set,
                     &syntax_theme,
                     &concurrent_tasks,
-                    &last_previewed,
                     &in_flight_previews,
                 );
             });
         }
 
-        self.last_previewed.lock().clone()
+        None
     }
 
     #[allow(dead_code)]
@@ -139,7 +133,6 @@ pub fn try_preview(
     syntax_set: &Arc<SyntaxSet>,
     syntax_theme: &Arc<Theme>,
     concurrent_tasks: &Arc<AtomicU8>,
-    last_previewed: &Arc<Mutex<Arc<Preview>>>,
     in_flight_previews: &Arc<Mutex<FxHashSet<String>>>,
 ) {
     debug!("Computing preview for {:?}", entry.name);
@@ -166,8 +159,6 @@ pub fn try_preview(
                 );
                 cache.lock().insert(entry.name.clone(), &preview);
                 in_flight_previews.lock().remove(&entry.name);
-                let mut tp = last_previewed.lock();
-                *tp = preview.stale().into();
             }
             Err(e) => {
                 warn!("Error opening file: {:?}", e);
diff --git a/crates/television-screen/Cargo.toml b/crates/television-screen/Cargo.toml
index 9ae942e..c0488d2 100644
--- a/crates/television-screen/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/television-screen/Cargo.toml
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ color-eyre = { workspace = true }
 syntect = { workspace = true }
 rustc-hash = { workspace = true }
 tracing = { workspace = true }
+devicons = { workspace = true }
 
 [lints]
 workspace = true
diff --git a/crates/television-screen/src/cache.rs b/crates/television-screen/src/cache.rs
index 526f7bf..da35566 100644
--- a/crates/television-screen/src/cache.rs
+++ b/crates/television-screen/src/cache.rs
@@ -1,15 +1,41 @@
+use devicons::FileIcon;
 use rustc_hash::FxHashMap;
 use std::sync::Arc;
 
 use ratatui::widgets::Paragraph;
 use television_utils::cache::RingSet;
 
-const DEFAULT_RENDERED_PREVIEW_CACHE_SIZE: usize = 25;
+const DEFAULT_RENDERED_PREVIEW_CACHE_SIZE: usize = 10;
+
+#[derive(Clone, Debug)]
+pub struct CachedPreview<'a> {
+    pub key: String,
+    pub icon: Option<FileIcon>,
+    pub title: String,
+    pub paragraph: Arc<Paragraph<'a>>,
+}
+
+impl<'a> CachedPreview<'a> {
+    pub fn new(
+        key: String,
+        icon: Option<FileIcon>,
+        title: String,
+        paragraph: Arc<Paragraph<'a>>,
+    ) -> Self {
+        CachedPreview {
+            key,
+            icon,
+            title,
+            paragraph,
+        }
+    }
+}
 
 #[derive(Debug)]
 pub struct RenderedPreviewCache<'a> {
-    previews: FxHashMap<String, Arc<Paragraph<'a>>>,
+    previews: FxHashMap<String, CachedPreview<'a>>,
     ring_set: RingSet<String>,
+    pub last_preview: Option<CachedPreview<'a>>,
 }
 
 impl<'a> RenderedPreviewCache<'a> {
@@ -17,15 +43,29 @@ impl<'a> RenderedPreviewCache<'a> {
         RenderedPreviewCache {
             previews: FxHashMap::default(),
             ring_set: RingSet::with_capacity(capacity),
+            last_preview: None,
         }
     }
 
-    pub fn get(&self, key: &str) -> Option<Arc<Paragraph<'a>>> {
+    pub fn get(&self, key: &str) -> Option<CachedPreview<'a>> {
         self.previews.get(key).cloned()
     }
 
-    pub fn insert(&mut self, key: String, preview: &Arc<Paragraph<'a>>) {
-        self.previews.insert(key.clone(), preview.clone());
+    pub fn insert(
+        &mut self,
+        key: String,
+        icon: Option<FileIcon>,
+        title: String,
+        paragraph: &Arc<Paragraph<'a>>,
+    ) {
+        let cached_preview = CachedPreview::new(
+            key.clone(),
+            icon,
+            title.clone(),
+            paragraph.clone(),
+        );
+        self.last_preview = Some(cached_preview.clone());
+        self.previews.insert(key.clone(), cached_preview);
         if let Some(oldest_key) = self.ring_set.push(key) {
             self.previews.remove(&oldest_key);
         }
diff --git a/crates/television-screen/src/preview.rs b/crates/television-screen/src/preview.rs
index b1ee114..180b4aa 100644
--- a/crates/television-screen/src/preview.rs
+++ b/crates/television-screen/src/preview.rs
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ use crate::{
     colors::{Colorscheme, PreviewColorscheme},
 };
 use color_eyre::eyre::Result;
+use devicons::FileIcon;
 use ratatui::widgets::{Block, BorderType, Borders, Padding, Paragraph, Wrap};
 use ratatui::Frame;
 use ratatui::{
@@ -22,20 +23,28 @@ use television_utils::strings::{
     replace_non_printable, shrink_with_ellipsis, ReplaceNonPrintableConfig,
     EMPTY_STRING,
 };
+use tracing::debug;
 
 #[allow(dead_code)]
 const FILL_CHAR_SLANTED: char = '╱';
 const FILL_CHAR_EMPTY: char = ' ';
 
 #[allow(clippy::needless_pass_by_value)]
-pub fn build_preview_paragraph(
-    preview_block: Block<'_>,
+pub fn build_preview_paragraph<'a>(
+    //preview_block: Block<'_>,
     inner: Rect,
     preview_content: PreviewContent,
     target_line: Option<u16>,
     preview_scroll: u16,
     colorscheme: Colorscheme,
-) -> Paragraph<'_> {
+) -> Paragraph<'a> {
+    let preview_block =
+        Block::default().style(Style::default()).padding(Padding {
+            top: 0,
+            right: 1,
+            bottom: 0,
+            left: 1,
+        });
     match preview_content {
         PreviewContent::AnsiText(text) => {
             build_ansi_text_paragraph(text, preview_block, preview_scroll)
@@ -244,20 +253,18 @@ pub fn build_meta_preview_paragraph<'a>(
     Paragraph::new(Text::from(lines))
 }
 
-#[allow(clippy::too_many_arguments)]
-pub fn draw_preview_content_block(
+fn draw_content_outer_block(
     f: &mut Frame,
     rect: Rect,
-    entry: &Entry,
-    preview: &Arc<Preview>,
-    rendered_preview_cache: &Arc<Mutex<RenderedPreviewCache<'static>>>,
-    preview_scroll: u16,
-    use_nerd_font_icons: bool,
     colorscheme: &Colorscheme,
-) -> Result<()> {
+    icon: Option<FileIcon>,
+    title: &str,
+    use_nerd_font_icons: bool,
+) -> Result<Rect> {
     let mut preview_title_spans = vec![Span::from(" ")];
-    if preview.icon.is_some() && use_nerd_font_icons {
-        let icon = preview.icon.as_ref().unwrap();
+    // optional icon
+    if icon.is_some() && use_nerd_font_icons {
+        let icon = icon.as_ref().unwrap();
         preview_title_spans.push(Span::styled(
             {
                 let mut icon_str = String::from(icon.icon);
@@ -267,10 +274,11 @@ pub fn draw_preview_content_block(
             Style::default().fg(Color::from_str(icon.color)?),
         ));
     }
+    // preview title
     preview_title_spans.push(Span::styled(
         shrink_with_ellipsis(
             &replace_non_printable(
-                preview.title.as_bytes(),
+                title.as_bytes(),
                 &ReplaceNonPrintableConfig::default(),
             )
             .0,
@@ -279,6 +287,8 @@ pub fn draw_preview_content_block(
         Style::default().fg(colorscheme.preview.title_fg).bold(),
     ));
     preview_title_spans.push(Span::from(" "));
+
+    // build the preview block
     let preview_outer_block = Block::default()
         .title_top(
             Line::from(preview_title_spans)
@@ -294,47 +304,136 @@ pub fn draw_preview_content_block(
         )
         .padding(Padding::new(0, 1, 1, 0));
 
-    let preview_inner_block =
-        Block::default().style(Style::default()).padding(Padding {
-            top: 0,
-            right: 1,
-            bottom: 0,
-            left: 1,
-        });
     let inner = preview_outer_block.inner(rect);
     f.render_widget(preview_outer_block, rect);
+    Ok(inner)
+}
 
-    let target_line = entry.line_number.map(|l| u16::try_from(l).unwrap_or(0));
-    let cache_key = compute_cache_key(entry);
+#[allow(clippy::too_many_arguments)]
+pub fn draw_preview_content_block(
+    f: &mut Frame,
+    rect: Rect,
+    entry: &Entry,
+    preview: &Option<Arc<Preview>>,
+    rendered_preview_cache: &Arc<Mutex<RenderedPreviewCache<'static>>>,
+    preview_scroll: u16,
+    use_nerd_font_icons: bool,
+    colorscheme: &Colorscheme,
+) -> Result<()> {
+    if let Some(preview) = preview {
+        debug!("preview is Some");
+        let inner = draw_content_outer_block(
+            f,
+            rect,
+            colorscheme,
+            preview.icon,
+            &preview.title,
+            use_nerd_font_icons,
+        )?;
 
-    // Check if the rendered preview content is already in the cache
-    if let Some(preview_paragraph) =
-        rendered_preview_cache.lock().unwrap().get(&cache_key)
-    {
-        let p = preview_paragraph.as_ref().clone();
-        f.render_widget(p.scroll((preview_scroll, 0)), inner);
-        return Ok(());
-    }
-    // If not, render the preview content and cache it if not empty
-    let c_scheme = colorscheme.clone();
-    let rp = build_preview_paragraph(
-        preview_inner_block,
-        inner,
-        preview.content.clone(),
-        target_line,
-        preview_scroll,
-        c_scheme,
-    );
-    if !preview.stale {
-        rendered_preview_cache
+        // check if the rendered preview content is already in the cache
+        let cache_key = compute_cache_key(entry);
+        let cached_preview = rendered_preview_cache
             .lock()
             .unwrap()
-            .insert(cache_key, &Arc::new(rp.clone()));
+            .get(&cache_key)
+            .into_iter();
+        if let Some(rp) = cached_preview.clone().next() {
+            debug!("cached preview found");
+            let p = rp.paragraph.as_ref().clone();
+            f.render_widget(p.scroll((preview_scroll, 0)), inner);
+            return Ok(());
+        } else {
+            debug!("cached preview not found");
+            // render the preview content and cache it if not empty
+            let rp = build_preview_paragraph(
+                //preview_inner_block,
+                inner,
+                preview.content.clone(),
+                entry.line_number.map(|l| u16::try_from(l).unwrap_or(0)),
+                preview_scroll,
+                colorscheme.clone(),
+            );
+            debug!("inserting into cache");
+            rendered_preview_cache.lock().unwrap().insert(
+                cache_key,
+                preview.icon,
+                preview.title.clone(),
+                &Arc::new(rp.clone()),
+            );
+            debug!("rendering widget");
+            f.render_widget(rp.scroll((preview_scroll, 0)), inner);
+            return Ok(());
+        }
+    // else if last_preview exists
+    } else {
+        debug!("preview is None");
+        let maybe_last_preview =
+            &rendered_preview_cache.lock().unwrap().last_preview.clone();
+
+        if let Some(last_preview) = maybe_last_preview {
+            let inner = draw_content_outer_block(
+                f,
+                rect,
+                colorscheme,
+                last_preview.icon,
+                &last_preview.title,
+                use_nerd_font_icons,
+            )?;
+
+            // check if the rendered preview content is already in the cache
+            let cache_key = last_preview.key.clone();
+            let maybe_cached_preview =
+                rendered_preview_cache.lock().unwrap().get(&cache_key);
+
+            if let Some(cached_preview) = maybe_cached_preview.clone() {
+                let p = cached_preview.paragraph.as_ref().clone();
+                f.render_widget(p.scroll((preview_scroll, 0)), inner);
+                return Ok(());
+            } else {
+                // render the preview content and cache it if not empty
+                let rp = build_preview_paragraph(
+                    inner,
+                    PreviewContent::Empty,
+                    None,
+                    preview_scroll,
+                    colorscheme.clone(),
+                );
+                rendered_preview_cache.lock().unwrap().insert(
+                    cache_key,
+                    last_preview.icon,
+                    last_preview.title.clone(),
+                    &Arc::new(rp.clone()),
+                );
+                f.render_widget(rp.scroll((preview_scroll, 0)), inner);
+            }
+            return Ok(());
+        }
+        // render empty preview
+        let inner = draw_content_outer_block(
+            f,
+            rect,
+            colorscheme,
+            None,
+            "",
+            use_nerd_font_icons,
+        )?;
+        let preview_outer_block = Block::default()
+            .title_top(Line::from(Span::styled(
+                " ",
+                Style::default().fg(colorscheme.preview.title_fg),
+            )))
+            .borders(Borders::ALL)
+            .border_type(BorderType::Rounded)
+            .border_style(Style::default().fg(colorscheme.general.border_fg))
+            .style(
+                Style::default()
+                    .bg(colorscheme.general.background.unwrap_or_default()),
+            )
+            .padding(Padding::new(0, 1, 1, 0));
+        f.render_widget(preview_outer_block, inner);
     }
-    f.render_widget(
-        Arc::new(rp).as_ref().clone().scroll((preview_scroll, 0)),
-        inner,
-    );
+
     Ok(())
 }
 
diff --git a/crates/television/television.rs b/crates/television/television.rs
index 890424a..69bec66 100644
--- a/crates/television/television.rs
+++ b/crates/television/television.rs
@@ -560,20 +560,24 @@ impl Television {
             && !matches!(selected_entry.preview_type, PreviewType::None)
         {
             // preview content
-            let preview = self.previewer.preview(&selected_entry);
-            self.current_preview_total_lines = preview.total_lines();
-            // initialize preview scroll
-            self.maybe_init_preview_scroll(
-                selected_entry
-                    .line_number
-                    .map(|l| u16::try_from(l).unwrap_or(0)),
-                layout.preview_window.unwrap().height,
-            );
+            let maybe_preview = self.previewer.preview(&selected_entry);
+
+            if let Some(preview) = &maybe_preview {
+                self.current_preview_total_lines = preview.total_lines();
+                // initialize preview scroll
+                self.maybe_init_preview_scroll(
+                    selected_entry
+                        .line_number
+                        .map(|l| u16::try_from(l).unwrap_or(0)),
+                    layout.preview_window.unwrap().height,
+                );
+            }
+
             draw_preview_content_block(
                 f,
                 layout.preview_window.unwrap(),
                 &selected_entry,
-                &preview,
+                &maybe_preview,
                 &self.rendered_preview_cache,
                 self.preview_scroll.unwrap_or(0),
                 self.config.ui.use_nerd_font_icons,