#2021-jan

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Variety- “Jared Padalecki on the Defining Deaths of ‘Supernatural’ and ‘Walker’“

(...) “It was a success story — it was Dean’s success story,” Padalecki reflects on the “Supernatural” series finale. “This guy gave his life for years and years and years and ultimately gave his life to have his No. 1 on the planet live as normal a life as possible.”

Shot amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the “Supernatural” season finale was not a parade of beloved guest stars getting one last good-bye, but instead focused on the Winchester brothers who started it all (with one very special appearance by Jim Beaver). Padalecki confirms for Variety that there was no version he had read that revealed who Sam’s wife was in those flashes through his later years. In the episode, she is seen out of focus, from a long distance.

“I think it was very, very purposely ambiguous and strangely I agreed with that,” he says. “I feel like a lot of what Sam did after Dean died was almost in honor of what Dean would have wanted, and Dean would not have wanted his little brother to marry Eileen, Ruby, someone in the life.”

Padalecki and Ackles shot Dean’s death scene and Sam’s goodbye to him on Sept. 4, 2020. “That day sucked,” Padalecki says. “It was all day, just watching Dean die. Going through that was really awful.” Less than a week later duo was shot reuniting in heaven, on what was their final day — and the final shot — for the series overall. Five weeks after that, Padalecki truly set Sam aside to step into his new role as Cordell Walker, the titular Texas Ranger who is mourning the death of his wife (played by his real-life wife Genevieve Padalecki) on the reimagining of “Walker, Texas Ranger” that is simply titled “Walker.” (...) Because Walker is in such deep grief when the audience meets him, Padalecki says that his challenge in the first season is to just keep it all together and try to balance being a good law enforcement official with being a good father.

“If he was on a boat that went down, he’s still trying to figure out how to stay above water; he’s not even looking for the horizon yet. It’s, ‘How do I fucking stay alive? My wife is gone, she did everything. I’m passionate about my job and making the world safer, but I can’t do that and be a dad. I may get in trouble with my job if I fail but I may fail my kids.’ He’s just trying to tread water,” Padalecki says.

Therefore, “it’s not about romantically moving on, but it’s also not really about trying to figure out how to move on” at all, he continues.

Regardless of how long a run “Walker” ends up getting to have, Padalecki says the central component of the show will always be Walker “not as a Texas Ranger who happens to have a family man, but a family man who happens to be a Texas Ranger.”

But, to be clear, even after jumping from one 15-year run on a broadcast drama straight into another broadcast drama, Padalecki says he hopes “‘Walker’ goes longer than ‘Supernatural.'”

“I get to wake up in my house with my wife and kids everyday and go to bed in the same house; I have a vote on where the story heads, so that makes me feel a little bit safer; the crew’s amazing; I love this city [Austin, Texas] and I have for years; I love the story we’re telling,” he explains.

During those 15 years on “Supernatural,” its fandom, he says, helped him realize “we can make a connection with other human beings in the real world by telling a story on television about random strange things as long as the underlying heart is there.” And that is what he hopes to continue for as long as he can. (...)

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Variety- “Jared Padalecki Talks Transitioning From ‘Supernatural’s’ Sam Winchester Into ‘Walker’”

In the spring of 2019, while Jared Padalecki was finishing shooting what would become the penultimate season of “Supernatural,” he began to sketch out an idea for his next project. After starring in the WB Network/CW drama alongside Jensen Ackles since 2005, Padalecki’s first thought was of continuing their partnership beyond that one show.

“I was tired of being on camera for 20 years straight,” he says. “I wanted to produce a show called ‘Walker’ starring Jensen Ackles.” (...) The idea came to Padalecki in his Vancouver trailer after reading an op-ed by a law enforcement official who walked away from duty rather than submit to separating migrant kids from their parents and putting them in cages, as was being asked of him. “I thought, ‘What an interesting person who struggles with what they are bound to do by duty and what they think they should do by their own moral compass,’” he explains.

From the beginning Padalecki knew he wanted his show to be about such an officer, and he knew he wanted to film in Austin, Texas, which is not only the headquarters of the Texas Rangers, but also where he and his family reside. It wasn’t until the extended producing team of Dan Lin, Lindsey Liberatore and showrunner Anna Fricke were in place that he realized he should star in it, too, because it was his “passion project.” Then “Walker” was truly born.

“The original [series] was this lawman who abides by his own rules, and he would just do head-spinning kicks on people, and obviously we can’t do that now; that would be laughably bad,” Padalecki says. “We don’t want the audience to ever know whether Walker is quote conservative or quote liberal, or quote Republican or quote Democrat. This version of ‘Walker,’ we play with the gray area: This is not a show about a martial artist kicking minorities in the face; this is a show about a legit Texan saying, ‘Hey, I need to hear the whole story before I make a decision.’ So this version is less about what goes through somebody’s fists and feet, and more about what goes through somebody’s head and heart.

”Padalecki’s character will therefore challenge some antiquated notions of what it takes to be tough. “I’m sure there are some MAGA hats who may be pissed off,” he notes, but he was “just in no way interested” in doing a show that leaned into toxically masculine tropes.

Even though CW chairman and CEO Mark Pedowitz acknowledges the show is “a different flavor” for the network, he wanted it on his schedule because of “a five-letter word,” namely, Jared. “Jared had a desire to do this; we had a desire to support Jared — it was a good mix,” Pedowitz says. “If we’re going to expand what the brand is, it’s good to expand with a person who has represented the brand so well through his career.” (...) “I want [Jared] associated in some form with The CW, no matter how it goes. So if it went with this as he only wanted to be a producer, that would have been fine,” Pedowitz says.

For Padalecki, earning the privilege to help shepherd a show from inception to air — behind the scenes in addition to on-screen — has been a singular experience. “I can protect that original idea, but furthermore I get to try and make sure our cast and crew are treated correctly and that some of the habits that can happen on a TV show that end up hurting people don’t materialize,” he says. (...) The CW put “Walker” on its development slate in the fall of 2019, when filming was underway on the final season of “Supernatural.” The plan was to shoot a pilot in April, but when the pandemic hit, Pedowitz pivoted strategy quickly and ordered the show straight to series in January. “I think we would have wasted people’s time trying to do a pilot in COVID,” he says, adding that if a production is going to run the risk of shooting, the network should be prepared for a series greenlight. (...) In between takes on “Walker,” Padalecki wants to create a family vibe for his fellow cast and crew members, which is taking some figuring out since COVID-safe protocols limit interaction. When they call “Cut!” at the end of a long day of shooting, he gets to hop in his car and head home to his wife, Genevieve Padalecki (who will play Walker’s deceased wife, Emily, in the new show), and his three kids, Thomas, Austin and Odette. Now more than ever, he can be a part of setting that routine at work and at home.

“For so long I didn’t know what my life was outside of ‘Supernatural.’ I’m starting to figure it out now,” he says.

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The Hollywood Reporter- “How The CW Is Plotting a Return to Business as Usual During a Pandemic“

[Context: Due to covid restrictions there were no TCA’s for 2020-21.]

(...) Let’s pretend we’re at TCA: When will you bring Supernatural back? If they boys want to come back, we’re ready to have them. (Laughing.) (...) Last year, you went straight to series on Superman & Lois and Walker largely out of concerns that there could be a WGA strike. Why is this an attractive model for some development this year?

A lot of is dependent upon what we’re dealing with in terms of production needs with ongoing series in a sense. The other is what’s the economic impact. Bypassing pilots is short-term less money than going straight to series. We look at the economic impact and if we believe enough in these shows and that will determine the decision. (...) Speaking of the studio level, Warner Bros. is in the midst of a massive change as Channing Dungey is replacing Peter Roth. How does the changeover at Warners — which co-owns The CW alongside CBS Studios — impact the network? What kind of conversations have you had with Channing about their content pipeline since Warners is your main supplier? Peter and I had remarkable partnership and relationship, and that will be missed. Channing worked with me when I ran ABC Studios and we’ve known each other for a long time. She’s very supportive of The CW and the shows that go on The CW. There are shows she’d like to keep there and get on the air there. Obviously, her priorities may be a little different than Peter’s. We are all working toward the same goal. (...) The CW is a joint venture between Warner Bros. and CBS Studios. Since both studios have prioritized their own studios, how much longer does it make sense for them to operate a linear network?

That’s a question for them. for the moment, both parent companies are happy with how this is set up. They recognize the value of The CW brand for selling their shows in digital aftermarket.

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2021: Instagram- Jensen Ackles

jensenackles: “Go get ‘em cowboy. @thecwwalker starts tonight starring this guy I know. @jaredpadalecki I better see some sweet roundhouse kicks!!!” - Jan 21, 2021

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