Summary

Jared Padalecki criticizes Nexstar Media Group’s “cheap content strategy” after CW’s cancelation of
Walker.

Padalecki expresses disappointment in the network’s shift to cheaper, less engaging content.

Walker
‘s success under Nexstar’s ownership was overshadowed by the network’s focus on cost-efficient programming.

Jared Padalecki isn’t ending his nearly 25-year run with The CW without a few parting shots at the network following the cancelation of his series Walker after four seasons. The actor seemed to be right at home with The CW after starring in three shows on the network, even when it used to be The WB, but that all ended during his last year when the network was scooped up by new owners Nexstar Media Group. Several signature shows were canceled on the network following the Nexstar acquisition, including Walker, and Padalecki is slamming their “cheap content strategy” employed by the new owners.

Walker Walker is The CW’s 2021 reboot of the ‘90s popular western Walker, Texas Ranger. The drama series was developed by Anna Fricke and stars Jared Padalecki as Cordell Walker, the titular Texas Ranger. Alongside Padalecki stars Molly Hagan, Keegan Allen, Violet Brinson, and Kale Kulley. Jared Padalecki’s wife, Genevieve, also appears in the series as Walker’s wife, Emily.Release Date January 21, 2021 Seasons 4 Studio Stick to Your Guns Productions, Rideback, Pursued By A Bear Productions Expand

During an interview with Variety, Padalecki spoke about the series finale of Walker and its cancelation. The actor did not hold back his feelings about the new norm at The CW, which is seeing the network grab cheaper content to make the network, in Nexstar’s opinion, more financially viable.

“My understanding is — and again, this is just what I’m told — that Nexstar is going in a different direction with The CW. 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. They’re just changing the network around, where it’s not really going to be a TV network as much as it’s going to be, ‘Here’s something fun for an hour that you’ll never watch again, but hopefully you watch it. And it’s cheap!’ And I hate to say that, but I’m just being honest. I mean, fuck 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.”

Jared Padalecki Has Been a Staple on the Network for Nearly 25 Years

Padalecki has been a part of the network across three shows and the better part of two decades. His tenure there began when the network was known as The WB on the hit series Gilmore Girls, playing Dean Forester, Rory Gilmore’s (Alexis Bledel) boyfriend for the series’ first three seasons. The actor remained recurring on the show during the fourth and fifth seasons and then moved on to an even bigger role on The WB in 2005, playing Sam Winchester on the genre series Supernatural.

Supernatural proved to be a signature hit for The WB, which made it a viable series to keep around when the network became The CW, a successor to the now-defunct UPN network and The WB. Supernatural was originally planned to end after three seasons by creator and showrunner Eric Kupke, but it was later extended to five seasons. The series remained a ratings hit for the network and even though the fifth season concluded the main storyline of the show, the series carried on. By the time Supernatural reached Season 11, it became the longest-running American live-action fantasy TV series, and it went on to run for a total of fifteen seasons and 327 episodes.

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Padalecky continued his relationship with The CW after Supernatural ended in 2019 with Walker, a reboot of the Chuck Norris CBS series Walker, Texas Ranger. After it was ordered to series in 2020, the show premiered in 2021, and its pilot episode became The CW’s most-watched telecast since 2018 and its most-viewed season premiere since the Season 4 start of The Flash. Walker continued to perform well for the network across its four seasons, but once The CW was acquired by Nexstar Media Group, the needs of the network shifted. Nexstar wanted to run the network more cost-efficient by going after shows with smaller budgets or by pursuing series with smaller acquisition fees, including unscripted reality fare and syndicated content. Walker was one of the last remaining scripted series on the network, with only All American returning next season.

Walker
is currently streaming on Max.