The run may not be over for Whiskey Cavalier, as ABC is reportedly considering bringing back the canceled Lauren Cohan series for season 2. Fans of The Walking Dead were distraught to learn that Cohan, who played badass Maggie Rhee on the long-running AMC zombie series, was leaving to pursue another opportunity on ABC’s Cavalier, a dramedy that mixes spy thriller storylines with Cheers-style romantic tension.
Co-starring Scott Foley as Cohan’s sparring partner, Whiskey Cavalier debuted on ABC in February to largely positive reviews (it currently carries an 82 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes). Ratings for the show started out strong as well, with the premiere pulling in 4.7 million viewers, but those numbers soon tailed off and most episodes have drawn in the 2.7 to 3 million range. Earlier in May, ABC announced it had elected not to bring the show back for a second season, leading to loads of speculation that a now-free Cohan might return to The Walking Dead (indeed, TWD showrunner Angela Kang has always kept the door open on Cohan coming back).
But now it appears that reports of Whiskey Cavalier’s demise may have been premature, as TVLine says ABC is looking at potentially bringing the show back. Insiders tell the website that ABC and Warner Bros. Television are actively talking about the show and the odds of it returning are currently 50/50. Warners is also looking around to other streaming services to possibly pick up the series. Naturally, neither ABC nor Warners will comment about the report. As for why ABC might be reconsidering their decision to axe the show, it seems fan outcry has been strong enough to convince the network to take another look. For his part, Whiskey Cavalier executive producer Bill Lawrence called on fans to tune in to last night’s season finale in hopes of putting even more pressure on ABC to reconsider. Lawrence’s tweet can be seen below:
If Whiskey Cavalier does make a reappearance thanks to fans, it would not be the first time such a comeback happened. Famously, Star Trek: The Original Series was cancelled by CBS only to be resurrected after fans called for a third season. In more recent years, Timeless, Friday Night Lights, Jericho, Family Guy and Veronica Mars have all benefited from similar fan campaigns, and lived on beyond their original cancellations. Even if Whiskey Cavalier doesn’t make a comeback on ABC, it sounds like there may be interest from a streaming service in picking up the show for a second season. Recently, the canceled Kiefer Sutherland series Designated Survivor received just such a resurrection courtesy of Netflix.
It remains to be seen if Whiskey Cavalier can make a comeback either on ABC or elsewhere, but the show certainly seems to have enough of a fan following to make the possibility real. Of course, if the show does have such a following, it’s fair to wonder why the ratings weren’t better in the first place. Perhaps a streaming service would be a better home for the show, as it would then not have the pressure of competing in a rigid time slot.
More: Walking Dead: Lauren Cohan Says Maggie Won’t Die
Source: TVLine, Bill Lawrence
