‘Walker, Texas Ranger’ Reboot With Jared Padalecki Picked up by The CW

Jared Padalecki is not going anywhere. The Walker, Texas Ranger reboot starring the Supernatural actor has landed at The CW, reports Deadline. The new series will be a reimagining of the 1990s CBS crime drama starring Chuck Norris. Padelecki has been a mainstay for The CW, following Gilmore Girls and Supernatural.

Padalecki was cast in Walker, Texas Ranger last month. It will be executive produced by Anna Fricke (Valor), Dan Lin (Lethal Weapon), Dan Spilo (Sunnyside) and Padelecki. Fricke will write the pilot.

The new series will feature Cordell Walker (Padalecki) being paired with a female partner after he returns home to Austin after two years of undercover work. The widower will try to reconnect with his children and mend his relationship with his conservative family. He also becomes suspicious of the facts behind his wife’s death.

According to Deadline, Padalecki came up with the idea of a Walker reboot, as he wanted to find a way to stay close to his Texas home with his next project. It will be a reboot in the vein of CBS’ hits Magnum P.I. and MacGyver, where a new version of the title character lives in a modern world. In other words, Padalecki’s character will not be a new generation of Walker, Texas Ranger, but a reimagining of Norris’ character.

CBS was thought to be a frontrunner for the project. After all, the show will be co-produced by CBS Studios and the eye network was home to the original series. However, The CW later emerged as a possible home, especially since Padalecki has built such a close relationship with the network. The CW has also been reboot happy as of late, finding success with Charmed, Dynasty and Roswell revivals.

Walker, Texas Ranger would be in the running for The CW’s 2020-2021 season.

Padalecki has starred on Supernatural for 15 seasons. His breakout role came on Gilmore Girls, playing Dean Forester from 2000 to 2005. Coincidentally, Padalecki starred in an unsold pilot called Young MacGyver in 2003.

The original Walker, Texas Ranger was created by Albert S. Ruddy, Leslie Greif, Paul Haggis and Christopher Canaan. It ran from 1993 to 2001, and ended with the 2005 movie Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial by Fire. There was also a short-lived spin-off titled Sons of Thunder.

Padalecki can be seen in Supernatural‘s 15th and final season, which kicks off on Oct. 10. The series is The CW’s longest-running show, debuting before the network was created when UPN and The WB merged.

Photo credit: Getty Images