Posted in: CBS, TV | Tagged: fire country, Jared Padalecki

Thieriot Sees Fire Country Franchise; Possible Jared Padalecki Spinoff

Fire Country star, co-creator, and EP Max Thieriot on growing the show's universe, a possible Jared Padalecki spinoff, and more.

It was back in August when we learned that Jared Padalecki (Supernatural, Walker) had joined the cast of series creators and executive producers Tony Phelan, Joan Rater, and Max Thieriot's Fire Country Season 3 in a recurring role for a three-episode story arc. Padalecki is set to play Camden, a SoCal firefighter and maverick with a surfer swagger who is a force to be reckoned with –  and someone who immediately recognizes Bode's (Thieriot) raw talent. Along with the news came word (though nothing official) that Padalecki's Camden could get his own spinoff series. Making that possibility even more possible was the news last month that CBS Studios had extended its 2022 first-look deal with Padalecki, which sees him developing and producing new linear and streaming series projects across linear and streaming. Well, it looks like Thieriot won't be going anywhere anytime soon, either. Earlier today, Deadline Hollywood reported exclusively that he had signed a first-look deal with CBS Studios.

"I've been working now with CBS and CBS Studios for almost 10 years and have come to love everybody over there," Thieriot shared. "At this point, they really are like family, and that, for me, is one of the most important things in this business. From the beginning, they believed in me and supported me, helping me along the way of finding the best people to be involved with." In terms of a possible Padalecki/Camden spinoff, Thieriot said, "We'll see where all that stuff goes; I think it's early to have any real update on that front." Overall, the Fire Country co-creator, actor, and EP sees the potential for more stories to be told in the show's universe – and he's not alone. "I think we all felt like 'Fire Country' was something that could become a franchise. And the most important people who believe in that are George [Cheeks] and Amy [Reisenbach] and David [Stapf] and everybody over there."

"We're so excited," executive producer Tia Napolitano shared with TV Insider shortly after Padalecki's casting was annnounced. "The part was written for Jared, very specifically. Jared and Max are buddies, so that helped." Up to this point, Bode's life path has been determined by others, but now that he's out, he faces the challenge of being able to make those decisions on his own. "Everyone in Bode's life before Camden hits the scene is sort of trying to tame a tiger when it comes to Bode to make sure he works the program so he can get out," Napolitano explained. "Camden is more Bode than anyone else on our show. I think they're twin flames and similar, and Camden's able to encourage – draw out maybe the dangerous side of Bode, but he sees the talent and leans into it. He doesn't try to put lightning back into the bottle."

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