What That ‘Walker’ Cameo Would’ve Set Up for Season 5

Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for the series finale of “Walker.”

The big picture

• Cameo by James Van Der Beek in
  Walker
  The series finale hinted at his role as a cult leader in the unmade fifth season.
• The cult plot would have brought a whimsical and quirky character to the series, affecting the lives of the Walker family.
• Walker
  The cancellation of The CW marked a shift in focus for The CW, highlighting the evolution of the network since its inception.

Like the CWs Walker ended after an abrupt cancellation by the network, Jared PadaleckiThe neo-western crime drama has proven once again that even after the main story was over, there was still some excitement left in the series. If you saw the season 4 finale (which works as an improvised series end), “See you sometime”, then you've seen it too that shocking cameo at the end that provokes so much more. That's okay, Dawson's Creekit is very own James Van Der Beek appeared as the Walker family's new neighbor in the series finale, serving as the final nail in the coffin of what would have been an exciting new season. But who was Van Der Beek going to touch? Well, we have some news for you…

James Van Der Beek Was Set to Play a Cult Leader in 'Walker'

In the Walker At the end of the series, it is mentioned in passing that the Davidsons had sublet their land to a mysterious new tenant. Even if we don't know who this person is, we do a few passing tips before James Van Der Beek first appears on screen. Not only does he arrive with a caravan of moving trucks, but when he arrives at the Walker house to meet his new neighbors, he brings them a batch of homemade soap. Although he's sorry to miss the Walkers, who have all been enjoying the summer, he leaves with a bright smile on his face that means he's got something up his sleeve that we the audience don't know about. Unfortunately, after Walkercancellation, we'll never quite know what he was doing.

But what we do know comes from the Walker the same creator of the series, Anna Frickewho landed his first official writing gig Dawson's Creek during the BM era (a show starring Van Der Beek himself). According to Fricke, Van Der Beek would have been playing a cult leader, and the entire fifth season would have followed that thread. “He loved the idea of ​​the cult leader, and I think half of those clothes are actually his own clothes,” Fricke told TV Line after the series finale. “I was really into it and really into the dynamic that it would bring, and I was really into the idea of ​​playing a fun character, an interesting character, a bad character.” Van Der Beek's character would not have been like some of the more manic or terrifying villains of past seasons, such as the Jackal killers or Kevin Golden (Jake Abel), but rather a “whimsical” and “curious” character who could have brought a different perspective to the series.

'Walker' Season 5 would have gone in a completely different direction

Had Walker renewed for a fifth season, it would have explored the cult plot more. However, this would not have been a murder cult like something from The next or any kind of horrible religious group, but rather a crazy group that would have made the Walker's life more difficult — in more ways than one. Most likely, this would have turned into something ominous, as many of these cult stories often do, and that's where Van Der Beek's character would have stepped in. Elsewhere in his post-series interview, Fricke also reveals that Liam (Keegan Allen) was asked to help the governor of Texas because his daughter was kidnapped. Given WalkerLeaning towards the overlapping of seemingly unrelated plots, we can assume that the cult may have had something to do with it as well.

“The cult would be fun,” the showrunner continued, revealing that Auggie (Kale Culley) was Walker's “in” on this new plot thread. “August will fall in love with the girl next door, he will be drawn into the cult, must be extracted. It would be fun.” After everything Auggie had been through in Season 4, disciplining himself and learning what it means to truly be of age, this could have been an interesting way for him to explore a new path, one where him.I have to admit that not all paths are right, this would have caused some tension between Walker and his son, although if season 4 taught us anything, it's that this kind of conflict only helps them to- they are stronger, cults, proposals and more, it seems Walker Season 5 would have been a spectacle, and there's no doubt that James Van Der Beek would have only added to the enjoyment.

'Walker' had been trying to get James Van Der Beek for years

funny enough Walker He had been around James Van Der Beek for years, since the actor moved his family to Austin when the show began production. “A little known fact is that we had approached him to be Clint West [in] Season 1, which Austin Nichols eventually played,” Fricke revealed. “Austin was so great in that role. I wouldn't have it any other way. But James had been on that list for a potential villain.” Because Jared Padalecki and James Van Der Beek were also friends, not unlike Padalecki and his ex. supernatural co-star Jensen Ackles, who directed an episode of the show's second season; there is no doubt that the chemistry between them would have been something worth waiting for. Of course, there's also the fact that they were both teen icons before The CW was even in its infancy.

“I think there was something deep about James Van Der Beek with Jared [Padalecki] on this show, as a great throwback to the original WB and commentary on the evolution of that network,” Fricke noted. “Maybe I was reading too much into it, but I liked it.” Although it would have been It's a lot of fun to watch these two WB legends playing each other, WalkerThe sudden cancellation is just another reminder that television today is not what it was in the early 2000s.. Also, The CW isn't the same network it was when Padalecki starred on the show. “I feel like The CW I was a part of last year is not The CW I was a part of [former chairman and CEO] Mark Pedowitz throughout that nearly 20-year stretch,” Padalecki later noted Walker's finale, criticizing the network for its decision to cancel the series in favor of “cheaper” entertainment.

While we won't get much more from Walker or his family, four seasons is still an impressive run for a show like this (five if you also include the prequel series, Walker: Independence). Maybe it wasn't the original Chuck NorrisWalker, Texas Rangerbut the CWs Walker he certainly knew how to carve his own unique legacy as a re-imagining worthy of the name. Maybe one day we'll see Jared Padalecki and James Van Der Beek face off on a different show.

Walker Season 4 is available to stream on The CW in the United States

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