‘Duck Dynasty’ stars signed through 2015
“Duck Dynasty” fans worried about an end of the series, which will come at some point in the future, can rest easy for the time being.
The Robertson clan is signed, sealed and delivered for another year of shows, according to Alan Robertson, the eldest son of family patriarch Phil Robertson. Alan, a former preacher, makes occasional appearances on the celebrated show set mostly in West Monroe.
“We know we’re locked in for at least another full year — through 2015. Beyond that, we really don’t know,” Robertson told The Times. “We have recommitted this year — both our family and the network production crew — to putting out some really good stories from our family that we can all enjoy. I think this next year’s going to be really, really good.”
Although the viewership numbers for the show have fallen from the nearly 12 million who watched “Til Duck Do Us Part,” when Alan Robertson remarried his parents, that episode was the most-watched nonfiction show in the history of cable television. The sixth season averaged 4.3 million viewers allowing “Duck Dynasty” to remain cable’s most-watched reality series, according to “The Hollywood Reporter.”
In town recently for the 2014 Duck Commander Independence Bowl Kickoff Luncheon with Emmitt Smith, Robertson, John Godwin and Justin Martin met one-on-one with various individuals to talk about the show and to display support for the bowl game bearing their company’s name. Willie Robertson was also in town and took part in the opening prayer led by Alan before the luncheon.
Godwin, a Duck Commander employee since 2002, said the A&E Network began filming season seven of “Duck Dynasty” last week.
“We’ve got some good things going on in it that we’re pretty excited about,” Godwin said. “We’ll be traveling abroad and there’s some good stuff.”
The network recently completed airing of the sixth season of the popular reality show. Episodes included “Phil-osophies: No Cell,” “Willie’s Jetpack Adventure,” “Si’s New Hobby: Couponing” and “Godwin’s Rotten Pickles.” Governor Bobby Jindal made an appearance on the show.
Alan Robertson, a.k.a. The Beardless Brother, was happy he’s finally landing more appearances in the television series.
“One of the best additions is they’re starting to put me on the air more,” Robertson said. “For awhile I joked that they only brought me on when they wanted the big ratings. To this day the highest rated show is the wedding, so I want to thank all of America for making my debut so meaningful.”
What the seventh season will entail is anyone’s guess, but the cast recently returned from an overseas shoot.
“We were filming the premier for the next season. We have a big event show coming up,” Alan Robertson said. “I got tickled cause it was just like when Phil was in Hawaii last year. He gets trapped. He says ‘it’s like Yuppieville on steroids.’ That’s his deal.”
Godwin is hoping the A&E folks reimburse him for his expenses, while he enjoys the celebrity of the show around town and on trips across the country. He said folks around West Monroe are easy to deal with.
“People come up and shake your hand, which is pretty flattering,” Godwin said. “It’s when we travel off when people want to come up and take pictures. It’s kinda weird too, cause I’m just me.”
Twitter: @JimmyWatson6