Justice for Wayward Circle! We all know and love Gilmore Girls, the cozy fall favorite show following the tight-knit relationship between mother Lorelai (Lauren Graham) and daughter Rory Gilmore (Alexis Bledel). But did you know there was supposed to be a spinoff that followed Jess Mariano (Milo Ventimiglia)?! Keep reading for everything we know about the supposed spinoff.
Was There *Really* Supposed to Be a ‘Gilmore Girls’ Spinoff?
Short answer: yes! Producers *seriously* were considering giving Jess his very own series, with the Gilmore Girls 2003 episode titled “Here Comes the Son” serving as the spinoff’s pilot episode. In the season 3 episode, Jess finds himself in Venice Beach in order to look for his father, whom he shares a rocky relationship with.
What Happened to the ‘Gilmore Girls’ Spinoff?
The show concept was abandoned when the filming location of Venice Beach was found to be too expensive, according to 2016 Bustle report.
What Was ‘Wayward Circle’ Supposed to Be About?
Wayward Circle was to follow Jess, the resident bad boy of Stars Hollow, on a journey of self-discovery while he formed a relationship with his father on the west coast. It would have also explained the massive changes Jess went through between Gilmore Girls season 3 and season 6.
ICYMI, Jess joined Gilmore Girls in season 2 as Luke’s broody and misunderstood nephew, quickly forming a relationship with Rory over their shared interest of classic literature. There, they start a romance, however *spoiler alert* the two do not end up together by the show’s final seventh season.
Jess’ character is an absolute fan-favorite, so when the Gilmore Girls revival was released on Netflix in 2016, a lot of fans had hopes that Rory and Jess would find each other again.
“I think things are complicated when you’re young,” Milo said of the teen characters on the “I’m All In” podcast in March 2021. “I think you’re going through a developmental change. You are seeing things in the world that you’ve never seen before. You’re experiencing things from the heart, from the gut, from the head, that you’re experiencing for the first time. So I think Jess and Rory, I think they were what they needed from the moment, from each other and at the same time, it didn’t work out. They went in different directions. And that’s OK too. That’s kind of great.”
He then praised the young fictional couple, saying, “Outside of what anybody wanted to put onto those two, they kind of made their own world and I think that’s pretty cool.”
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