Walker: Matt Barr to Star Alongside Jared Padalecki

Matt Barr is making a triumphant return to his old stomping grounds at The CW.

The beloved actor has been added to the cast of the network's forthcoming Walker, Texas Ranger reboot.

Barr is on board as Hoyt, Cordell Walker's (Jared Padalecki) best friend.

The character is described as "Hill Country's Han Solo" and a "Lonestar lothario," but the two friends will find themselves on opposite sides of the law.

For now, Barr is set to recur on the series, likely due to his contract with CBS drama series Blood & Treasure, which has been MIA for over a year.

Still, the sophomore season of that series has been filmed, so we know it's coming at some point.

Barr joins an expansive cast that includes Supergirl's Odette Annable as an old friend of Walker's, Pretty Little Liars' Keegan Allen as Walker's brother, The 100's Lindsey Morgan as Cordell's partner, and Padakecki's real-life wife, Genevieve Padalecki, as Walker's late wife.

Barr is probably most well-known for his roles on One Tree Hill, Friday Night Lights, and Hellcats.

The drama, simply titled Walker, finds the former Supernatural star as, “a widower and father of two with his own moral code who returns home to Austin after being undercover for two years, only to discover there’s harder work to be done at home,” according to the official synopsis.

“He’ll attempt to reconnect with his children, navigate clashes with his family and find unexpected common ground with his new partner (one of the first women in Texas Rangers history), while growing increasingly suspicious about the circumstances surrounding his wife’s death.”

The series will inherit the Supernatural time period when it launches Thursday, January 21 at 8/7c.

It will be paired up with Legacies, which is returning for its third season after having its second cut short.

Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.