NuDallas featured in TvLine's "What Would've Happened Next"

[Sea - Boo! - Er]

As I've said before, there's a difference between ignoring and contradicting. Much of what was in TNT Dallas can be safely ignored but if a new writer wants to change something then I believe an explanation is in order. So much of the criticism against Cidre could have been avoided if she'd followed that simple rule.

 

[Kenny Coyote]

Just one problem with this theory Kenny...Ken Kercheval passed away...unless of course you are up for a recast if a continuation of Dallas ever came to light. The treatment of Cliff in TNT Dallas was unforgivable. No explanation was offered why he hated the Ewing family still. This is one of those scenarios where the writers of a continuation of Dallas would not need to address the failures of TNT Dallas. Simply put, let sleeping dogs lie. It's why in my continuation I'd leave Christopher dead because I wouldn't wish to be lumbered with their failings when in a fit of desperation The Cider House decided a Ewing will die. A simple scene of Bobby visiting Christopher's grave followed by a wide shot reveals the final resting place of Cliff and Pam, side by side, offers fans closure on the Barnes family. No explanation is required on what happened to Cliff and why he did the things he did in TNT Dallas.

There's another problem too - Dallas began in 1978. It's forty two years old! TNT Dallas featured four of the integral original actors in their original roles and now we've only got two of them left. The situation certainly doesn't get any better as more time goes by. So yeah, I think recasting for a continuation should be strongly considered. It's hard to have a Dallas without JR. Is it Dallas without JR Ewing? It's even harder without JR, Cliff and Pam (since the actress is retired from acting). This is a hypothetical scenario too, so we don't have the details. It's hard to rule out a recast when we don't even know the details of when this continuation would take place. Are we talking about a continuation that will start production next year or eight years from now? Those things make a difference. Not knowing any of the details, yeah, I'd definitely consider recasting a number of roles or maybe even all of them.

Dallas is old enough now that you could consider it a classic and as with all classics, if the story is going to continue to be told, whether on a Broadway stage or TV, at some point you either recast or you can't tell the story anymore. Broadway gets by with recasting characters in classic stories and by Broadway I really mean the entire professional theater industry. Who was the first actor ever to play Hamlet on stage? I'm sure he's not alive now. It's a classic story that people love and they don't seem to mind that they're not seeing the original actor play the role of Hamlet. So I think people could and would accept another actor playing Cliff or JR or any of the main characters for that matter, as long as they recast carefully and they get actors and actresses have the ability to play those characters in a way that has value for the audience.

We've discussed recasting for Dallas before on the forum. I really like the idea @Taylor Bennett Jr. came up with, of having a prequel to Dallas that begins sometime in the 60s and continues on into the 70s, maybe all the way up to 1978. That's my favorite idea for another Dallas of all the ones I've come across. I'd find it fascinating to get some more insight into how Jock built Ewing Oil. The could even use flashbacks to the 40s or 50s and we could see him building Ewing Oil from a small company into an empire. Let's see exactly how Jock did it! How ruthless did he have to be to accomplish what he did? How did the way he did business differ from how JR and Bobby did business? Being able to see some of the early events in the lives of JR, Bobby and the rest that helped form their personalities would be interesting. How much did not being the favorite son of either Jock or Ellie contribute to JR becoming the type of man he became? Just how different was Bobby when he was living his "playboy" lifestyle? How far was Bobby willing to go and how far did he go to ensure he was the best road man, not just for Ewing Oil, but any oil company, as he claimed he was?

There have been other series that have been what I think they call "period pieces"- shows that take place in an earlier time and some have been extremely successful. Mad Men was set in the early 60s, wasn't it? They certainly found an audience. The time period of 1968-1978 is one of those time periods in our history that as far as I know, hasn't been used in any of those types of shows. They always go back to even earlier times. Now that we've got a considerable number of our populace who fondly remember that time, or are interested in it because they were too young then to really appreciate it, I think a lot of people would be interested in seeing a prequel to Dallas that takes place then. There's a nostalgia value to it, both for the people who fondly remember that time, as well as people who were too young to fully experience it, but wish they could have been old enough to fully experience it.

 

[Sea - Boo! - Er]

There's another problem too - Dallas began in 1978. It's forty two years old! TNT Dallas featured four of the integral original actors in their original roles and now we've only got two of them left. The situation certainly doesn't get any better as more time goes by. So yeah, I think recasting for a continuation should be strongly considered. It's hard to have a Dallas without JR. Is it Dallas without JR Ewing? It's even harder without JR, Cliff and Pam (since the actress is retired from acting). This is a hypothetical scenario too, so we don't have the details. It's hard to rule out a recast when we don't even know the details of when this continuation would take place. Are we talking about a continuation that will start production next year or eight years from now? Those things make a difference. Not knowing any of the details, yeah, I'd definitely consider recasting a number of roles or maybe even all of them.

If we're talking about a true contemporary continuation rather than a reboot then dead characters should stay dead with the focus shifting the next generation(s). Regardless of what Cider may have said, I won't consider Christopher dead unless I see it onscreen but either way there are enough established offspring to continue without inventing new ones.

If we're talking about a prequel or a reboot set in modern times then yes recasting would be necessary, although I don't personally find either of those options as appealing.

 

[Kenny Coyote]

If we're talking about a true contemporary continuation rather than a reboot then dead characters should stay dead with the focus shifting the next generation(s). Regardless of what Cider may have said, I won't consider Christopher dead unless I see it onscreen but either way there are enough established offspring to continue without inventing new ones.

If we're talking about a prequel or a reboot set in modern times then yes recasting would be necessary, although I don't personally find either of those options as appealing.

If I could choose, I'd want to see a prequel so that we could see the things that shaped the characters and helped make them the type of people they were by the debut of original Dallas. Seeing Bobby in his football or playboy years, seeing Jock do the work to build Ewing Oil into the huge company he made it, see the interactions between Jock and Gary when Gary was a teenager, and see what formed JR's outlook on life and his general mindset. It would have to be done by someone who loves the show and knows it inside out though.

That being said, I'd be interested in any sort of Dallas continuation as long as it's good. If it's modern day, they should use Lucas, Margaret Krebbs and maybe Cally's child from JR as well. They could use Steve Kanaly and Charlene Tilton too - I bet they were disappointed they didn't really get used on TNT.

 

[Rove]

If we're talking about a true contemporary continuation rather than a reboot then dead characters should stay dead with the focus shifting the next generation(s). Regardless of what Cider may have said, I won't consider Christopher dead unless I see it onscreen but either way there are enough established offspring to continue without inventing new ones.

So true but since many had issues with Jesse Metcalfe's portrayal of Christopher Ewing then I'd simply leave the character dead. No re-cast, nothing. Start with a clean slate. We then have another problem with TNT Dallas with the introduction of JR's daughter. Do we except it, or ignore it? In this regard if we chose the later an explanation would be required.

 

[Kenny Coyote]

So true but since many had issues with Jesse Metcalfe's portrayal of Christopher Ewing then I'd simply leave the character dead. No re-cast, nothing. Start with a clean slate. We then have another problem with TNT Dallas with the introduction of JR's daughter. Do we except it, or ignore it? In this regard if we chose the later an explanation would be required.

@Rove, I don't remember TNT having a woman who was JR's daughter. What actress played her?

 

[Rove]

@Rove, I don't remember TNT having a woman who was JR's daughter. What actress played her?

An actress had not yet been selected or appeared as JR's daughter however there is no denying it's now part of Dallas canon...

This is one small detail from TNT Dallas which I believe needs to be addressed rather than ignored. I'd be interested from other posters thoughts do we accept this new character or simply brush her under the carpet and leave it to the figment of The Cider House imagination.

 

[Kenny Coyote]

An actress had not yet been selected or appeared as JR's daughter however there is no denying it's now part of Dallas canon...

This is one small detail from TNT Dallas which I believe needs to be addressed rather than ignored. I'd be interested from other posters thoughts do we accept this new character or simply brush her under the carpet and leave it to the figment of The Cider House imagination.

Thanks for the video clip @Rove. I had forgotten that.

I have an idea for how this could be done. They never did utilize JR and Cally's child in TNT Dallas. Did Cally mention anything about her kid when she was at JR's funeral? I remember Cally being there but I don't think she mentioned her child. You could have the sister Bum says he found out about from Emma turn out to be Cally's daughter. She was worried that JR would go looking for her baby so she arranged for the hospital records to say she had a son when she actually had a daughter. If anyone ever went looking for JR's son he wouldn't find him, because there was no son.

 

[Rove]

Did Cally mention anything about her kid when she was at JR's funeral?

Not one word was mentioned about Cally's child. It was these minor details which drove myself and others nuts. Much like when Ray made the odd appearance in TNT Dallas. I don't recall Bobby inquiring about his son Lucas.

 

[Kenny Coyote]

Not one word was mentioned about Cally's child. It was these minor details which drove myself and others nuts. Much like when Ray made the odd appearance in TNT Dallas. I don't recall Bobby inquiring about his son Lucas.

Cidre did that so she could push the characters she created herself to the forefront. She lessened the presence of characters from the original so she'd have more time to showcase the "brilliant" characters she created herself.

 

[Karin]

So true but since many had issues with Jesse Metcalfe's portrayal of Christopher Ewing then I'd simply leave the character dead. No re-cast, nothing. Start with a clean slate. We then have another problem with TNT Dallas with the introduction of JR's daughter. Do we except it, or ignore it? In this regard if we chose the later an explanation would be required.

If they ever do a Dallas reunion movie or continuation I want Christopher to be alive. I hated that they supposedly killed him and since the show ended there I won't accept it. It can easily be dismissed if you would want to. So if someone else picks up the show again I want Chris to be in it. Oh and for the record I liked Jesse Metcalfe portrayal of the character!

I would also introduce John Ross sister and clear up who was the father of Elena's baby.

 

[Rove]

I would also introduce John Ross sister

I have to agree with you on this Karin. As the unknown sister is part of Dallas canon I'd choose to keep her. But would you change the synopsis of the character? According to The Cidre House of thoughts this long lost daughter of JR's had bracelets and chipped nails.

 

[Kenny Coyote]

I have to agree with you on this Karin. As the unknown sister is part of Dallas canon I'd choose to keep her. But would you change the synopsis of the character? According to The Cidre House of thoughts this long lost daughter of JR's had bracelets and chipped nails.

Do the chipped nails signify that she comes from a place that might be similar to Haleyville? I think that if you have an idea for a good story for that girl, then sure, go with it. If you had a better idea for a character who is a girl who wouldn't come from that background, I don't think you should feel obligated to have to use the lesser idea just to stay faithful to Cidre's vision. CC wasn't exactly faithful to the original.

 

[Karin]

I have to agree with you on this Karin. As the unknown sister is part of Dallas canon I'd choose to keep her. But would you change the synopsis of the character? According to The Cidre House of thoughts this long lost daughter of JR's had bracelets and chipped nails.

Yes I would change the synopsis of the character since we never saw CC's vision on screen. The scene they filmed were deleted so we don't have to stay true to it.

I would make her the daughter of a character we knew from the original show like Julie Grey or Katherine Wentworth.

 

[Michael Torrance]

This is one small detail from TNT Dallas which I believe needs to be addressed rather than ignored. I'd be interested from other posters thoughts do we accept this new character or simply brush her under the carpet and leave it to the figment of The Cider House imagination.

But we know what she was going to be like. She was going to be a Cidre character, not a Ewing character.

 

[Rove]

I would make her the daughter of a character we knew from the original show like Julie Grey or Katherine Wentworth.

Julie Grey would be a nice touch, especially if the long lost daughter had a red file. CC did state the mother was long dead. Katherine Wentworth would be great as well but there is one detail I'd like to correct in my continuation and have Katherine rise from the dead. Bobby's throwaway line could easily be resolved.

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

She lessened the presence of characters from the original so she'd have more time to showcase the "brilliant" characters she created herself.

Then I guess Katherine Wentworth was also a horrible choice because she appeared out of nowhere and had nothing to do with the Ewings and the pre-season 5 story.

 

[Sea - Boo! - Er]

We then have another problem with TNT Dallas with the introduction of JR's daughter. Do we except it, or ignore it?

I'd keep her but . . .

I would make her the daughter of a character we knew from the original show like Julie Grey or Katherine Wentworth.

I read a fanfic that made Kimberly Cryder the mother and it seemed to work well enough. From memory, Cally's child was a boy, but I could be wrong about that.

But we know what she was going to be like. She was going to be a Cidre character, not a Ewing character.

We don't really know anything about her. A new showrunner wouldn't be bound by what Cidre was going to do.

 

[Kenny Coyote]

Yes I would change the synopsis of the character since we never saw CC's vision on screen. The scene they filmed were deleted so we don't have to stay true to it.

I would make her the daughter of a character we knew from the original show like Julie Grey or Katherine Wentworth.

There was a deleted scene with John Ross' sister? So they had already cast an actress to play her? Did they delete the scene because they decided to get a different actress?

I agree you don't have to stay to true to it, considering it didn't air. Can you imagine anyone being so meticulous as to make a continuation from the original that stays true to scenes that never aired? Cidre couldn't even manage to stay true to what did air. Not that I'd suggest to anyone to use her standards. It's partly because her standards were so low that I wouldn't mind if they ignored her show and just made the best continuation they could, staying true to the original story. I don't see the incentive to want to stay true to a failed product. Considering the success of the original and how it had over 350 episodes, but Cidre couldn't muster more than 40 episodes before being cancelled, I don't think I'm alone in thinking that the TNT show was not authentic Dallas. I've covered that already.

I don't mind the idea of a continuation that acknowledges Cidre's project but to take it to a level where someone would try to stay faithful to scenes that weren't aired, what would be the point? If the scenes didn't even meet Cidre's almost non-existent standard of quality, that tells me they were best left deleted!

I kind of feel bad for the original cast actors who read the script and decided to accept the job anyway. I wonder if some needed the money that badly, after already earning so much in their careers. It was nice to see them on TV again though, together in the same show. That was what I did like about TNT Dallas - it gave us the chance to see them again, together in the same show.

 

[Kenny Coyote]

A new showrunner wouldn't be bound by what Cidre was going to do.

Right. There's a reason she didn't get the opportunity to do whatever it is she was going to do. Her show wasn't attracting a big enough audience to merit continuing airing it. Most Dallas fans didn't watch it, and most of the ones who started watching it, stopped watching it before it ended. The problems were apparent from the beginning. When they had a show billed as a continuation of the most successful show CBS ever had, but CBS didn't even want it, that's suspect. When none of the major networks wanted anything to do with a continuation of a show that successful, that was beyond suspect.