On the heels of Walker being renewed for Season 3, The CW has announced that they have ordered a prequel series Walker: Independence to series.
Walker: Independence is set in the 1800s and will follow Katherine McNamara as Abby Walker, an ancestor of the parent show’s title character. Abby Walker is a rich woman from Boston who witnesses the murder of her husband. She then teams up with “a lovable rogue” named Hoyt Rawlins played by Matt Barr on a mission of revenge that takes her down to Independence, Texas.
The new series will be a spin-off of The CW series Walker starring Jared Padalecki as Cordell Walker, which is a modern-day reboot of the 90s series Walker, Texas Ranger starring Chuck Norris. The reboot and prequel have been created by Anna Fricke. Fricke has served as a producer and writer on other series like Being Human, Minority Report, and Wayward Pines.
Walker: Independence will McNamara and Barr in the two central roles. McNamara is known for her roles in series like Shadowhunters, The Stand, and a previous CW show, Arrow. She has also appeared in movies like Maze Runner: The Death Cure and Natural Selection. Barr actually a minor character of the same name on the first season of Walker, and will presumably be playing the character’s ancestor in this prequel. He is also known for other series such as Blood & Treasure and Hatfields & McCoys and films like The Layover.
The script for Walker: Independence was written by Seamus Fahey who co-wrote the story with Fricke.
Both will also be serving as executive producers, with Fricke doing so through her Pursued by a Bear production banner. Padalecki will also be serving as an executive producer on the prequel series alongside Dan Lin and Lindsey Liberatore from Rideback and with Laura Terry from Pursued by a Bear. Larry Tend directed the pilot episode and will be serving as an executive producer as well.
Stay tuned to Collider for any updates on Walker: Independence, and check out the official synopsis of the series below:
“Walker: Independence” is set in the late 1800s. It follows Abby Walker (Katherine McNamara), an affluent Bostonian whose husband is murdered before her eyes while on their journey out West. On her quest for revenge, Abby crosses paths with Hoyt Rawlins (Matt Barr), a lovable rogue in search of purpose. Abby and Hoyt’s journey takes them to Independence, Texas, where they encounter diverse, eclectic residents running from their own troubled pasts and chasing their dreams.