diff --git a/src/previewer.rs b/src/previewer.rs
index 9a65f404..a6ca00f7 100644
--- a/src/previewer.rs
+++ b/src/previewer.rs
@@ -503,8 +503,15 @@ fn run(rx_preview: Receiver<PreviewEvent>, on_return: Box<dyn Fn(Vec<AnsiString>
                         let callback_clone = callback.clone();
                         let thread = thread::spawn(move || {
                             wait(spawned, move |lines| {
+                                let output = if lines.is_empty() {
+                                    vec![AnsiString::parse(
+                                        format!("Command exited successfully, but output was empty: {}", cmd).as_str(),
+                                    )]
+                                } else {
+                                    lines
+                                };
                                 stopped_clone.store(true, Ordering::SeqCst);
-                                callback_clone(lines, pos);
+                                callback_clone(output, pos);
                             })
                         });
                         preview_thread = Some(PreviewThread {