By Taylor Neumann
Walker, Texas Ranger made Chuck Norris a household name. Will its new update, Walker (Jan. 21, The CW), do the same for its star Jared Padalecki? Not that he’s having much trouble being recognized now — he just finished up a 15-season run on the cult favorite Supernatural. Walker has some similar themes — he is in the business of saving people, after all — but the show is a fresh take for the actor, who wasn’t sure what he would be doing after the end of Supernatural.
“For the longest time, I thought I wanted to take a long break after Supernatural finished. We filmed in Vancouver, but my home and family have been in Austin, Texas, for 10 years. We didn’t get to see each other as much as we wanted, and it seemed like my kids would grow up so fast every time I would be gone for a week or two,” explained Padalecki. “Then, COVID happened. Supernatural shut down for five-and-a-half months, and I was with my family every single day. It was wonderful to be with them so much, but I realized how much I loved working and telling stories.” Luckily for Padalecki, Walker films in Austin, home of the real-life Texas Rangers. “I get to see [my family] every day and be a part of a story that I am passionate about.”
This new iteration of Walker of course centers on its hero, Cordell Walker, a widowed father of two who returns to Austin after being away on an undercover mission for two years. He has to relearn his relationships with his son and daughter, as well as with the rest of his family who stepped in in his absence. Even work is different, with an old coworker now his superior, and he’s assigned a new partner, Micki Ramirez (Lindsey Morgan), one of the first women in Texas Rangers history. But Walker soon becomes suspicious of the events surrounding his wife’s death, and as he investigates, things become even more unclear. (Fun fact: Walker’s wife, Emily, is played by Genevieve Padalecki — Jared’s real-life wife!)
Viewers will find much to love about this new version of Cordell. “This Walker is much more about a family than it is about a swashbuckling hero who runs around roundhouse kicking bad guys,” says Padalecki. “Those have been my favorite stories to tell.”
