Westerns are experiencing a major resurgence on television. Yellowstone, Outer Range, and Walker have all cemented a growing interest in cowboys, outlaws, and the American frontier. Now, The CW is adding to its Western collection with Walker: Independence, a prequel series to the more contemporary reboot, Walker. In a recent press conference attended by members of the press, including CBR, co-Executive Producer Seamus Fahey noted that the spin-off wasn't inspired by the current Western renaissance but by the death of beloved Walker character, Hoyt Rawlins (Matt Barr).
"We kind of regretted it, to be honest," Fahey said about Hoyt's demise in response to a question about the show's genesis. "So we started to think about what we did wrong with our lives, but also with that creative choice. It kinda started with just a text to co-Executive Producer Anna Fricke saying, 'Well, what if we went back to the first generation [of] Walkers, and Hoyt Rawlins was part of the ride?' A couple of texts later, all of a sudden, Jared Padalecki is on the hook, the studio is excited, and it kind of went from there. We just built momentum and developed the pitch."
"There's a lot of Easter eggs with Walker that we're gonna do more and more of," Fahey continued. "We wanted Independence to stand on its own and be its own thing -- be the first generation and figure out what all the expectations people might have and how do we subvert them -- how do we have a fresh approach, a new take to the proceedings, and just keep building with that in mind?"
Just because Fahey approached Walker: Independence by thinking about the character of Hoyt Rawlins doesn't mean that he was unaware of the recent Western renaissance. In fact, he's a big fan of all types of Westerns. "My dad loved Westerns, so I watched Westerns with him," Fahey said in response to a question about the revitalization of Westerns. "It was more interesting [thinking] of which ones did my mom like, and to come at it with more than just the ones my dad liked. So, instead of just Butch Cassidy [and the Sundance Kid], what's McCabe and Mrs. Miller? What is the little Western that is a little off? So, I always loved them... the popular ones and the obscure ones."
"One-Eyed Jacks is one of the best Westerns ever made that not many people talk about, so I think it always stayed with me," Fahey added. "I think it stayed with a lot of folks, like the creators and just people who rewatched ones."
"I don't know why [Westerns] went dormant," Fahey explained, "but, obviously there's Deadwood, and a gentleman by the name of Taylor Sheridan kind of helped the revival. At the time, I think there wasn't a fresh take." Fahey aimed to find ways to shine a light on the margins of the history of the American West, to deliver a remix of Western storytelling and filmmaking that acknowledged the tropes and found ways to subvert or twist them.
Walker: Independence premieres Oct. 6 on the CW.