(Photo: The CW)
Walker fans may need to prepare themselves for some bad news. While The CW series has not been officially cancelled or renewed for a fifth season yet, the show’s sets are being dismantled.
The Walker series, which stars Jared Padalecki, Ashley Reyes, Keegan Allen, Mitch Pileggi, Molly Hagan, Violet Brinson, Kale Culley, Coby Bell, Jeff Pierre, and Odette Annable, is a modern take on the classic CBS series Walker, Texas Ranger.
While it’s not a great sign, the removal of the Walker sets does not necessarily mean the Padalecki series has been cancelled. They are not being destroyed, at least not yet. If the series is renewed, the sets could go back up. Taking them down is a cost-saving measure by the network while deciding on its future. The network has until the end of July, when the contract options on the cast run out, to make a decision.
Deadline revealed the following about the decision to take down the Walker sets:
There have been conversations between the CW and CBS Studios, something the network’s President of Entertainment Brad Schwartz confirmed on Thursday. However, “we didn’t feel any need to rush to meet some Upfront deadline,” he said about not making renewal decisions yet.
Under normal circumstances, a Season 5 renewal for Walker should be a no-brainer — it is the CW’s most watched series. Yet, a pickup — even if it comes — will also have to come at the right price for the show to come back. As Deadline reported last month, Walker cannot continue without a significant increase in its license fee, believed to be currently at $500k-$550k an episode, the lowest among the three remaining “old CW” dramas, which also include the All American duo, and a fraction of what an average broadcast drama costs to produce.
The target is to get the fee close to the $1M an episode mark, which would make it financially feasible for CBS Studios to continue making the Jared Padalecki drama.
A report last month noted that Walker was not likely to be cancelled as it’s relatively inexpensive to produce and performs well in the ratings for the network.
Season four of the series is currently airing on Wednesday nights and will wrap on June 26th.
What do you think? Have you kept up with this drama? Do you want to see a fifth season of Walker on The CW?
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