Jared Padalecki might be prepping to reunite with Eric Kripke in the final season of The Boys, but obliterating The CW sits high on his to-do list at the moment.
From starring in Amy Sherman-Palladino’s iconic Gilmore Girls to leading Supernatural with Jensen Ackles, Padalecki has been a part of The CW for roughly 25 long years. Until now, as he comes with guns blazing, ready to beat the studio to a metaphorical pulp.
Jared Padalecki Bashes The CW For Its “Cheap” Tricks
After 15 seasons of playing one of the Winchester brothers in Supernatural, Jared Padalecki went on to become the lead actor and an executive producer of Walker, a contemporary reboot of the ’90s Chuck Norris-led Walker, Texas Ranger. Despite a successful run for four seasons, however, the show suffered a premature cancelation, leaving both fans and the cast heartbroken.
In a new interview with Variety, Padalecki – who portrayed the heroic Cordell Walker in The CW series – says a bittersweet goodbye to the studio that launched him into stardom, only to sour that bond by nixing his iteration of Walker.
I feel like The CW that I was a part of last year is not The CW that I was a part of under [former chairman and CEO] Mark Pedowitz for that entire, almost 20-year stretch […] And I hate to say that, but I’m just being honest. I mean, f**k it. They can’t fire me again. I’m just being brutally honest. I think it felt to me like they were looking for really easy, cheap content that they could fill up time with.
Fans were not the only ones to be kept in the dark about the tragic fate of the show, even the crew – including Walker showrunner Anna Fricke – was unaware that the studio had decided to scrap season 5 (via Deadline).
This is Why Walker Was Canceled, As Per Jared Padalecki
There seems to be a major overhaul in the programming strategy at The CW after the switch in ownership from CBS and Warner Bros. to Nexstar. That coupled with budgetary constraints appears to be the primary culprit behind calling off the contemporary Western drama. Or as Padalecki, 41, was told, “Nexstar is going in a different direction with The CW” (via Variety).
I mean, they have an hour of Trivial Pursuit and an hour of Scrabble coming up. I don’t know why you wouldn’t just download the app or grab a board game and play with your friends, but they’re clearly just — what’s that great quote? It’s like, ‘If somebody tells you who they are, ask questions. If somebody shows you who they are, believe them.’
With the rueful end of Walker, the House of Wax star seems to be at a crossroads with what his future holds. While he and his wife are in the nascent stages of a production project, “Beyond that,” Padalecki said, “I still feel like I haven’t grieved the loss of “Walker,” so I don’t know yet if I trust my feelings.”
Seasons 1-4 of Walker can be streamed on Max.
