Justin Johnson Cortez is crossing over…
The Latino-Indigenous actor, a series regular on the CW period drama Walker: Independence, is crossing over into the future as a guest star on Walker.
He’ll play a potentially recurring new role, which could eventually have ties to Calian, the Indigenous character he plays on Walker: Independence.
Cortez will appear on the contemporary Walker as Detective Sonny Alcala, a shrewd homicide detective who got his start working closely with Cordell Walker (Jared Padalecki) and Captain James (Coby Bell) on a case years ago. The detective initially calls Walker as a courtesy to let him know of a death relating to a case, but something doesn’t quite add up.
The Walker origin series Walker Independence is set in the 1800s and follows Abigail Walker, the ancestor of Padalecki’s Cordell Walker. Cortez plays Calian, a member of an Indigenous scouting party outside Independence, Texas. In the midseason finale, Calian left Independence after he was put on trial for the murder of one of the town’s founding fathers, Francis Reyes.
Padalecki, who is an executive producer on Walker Independence, recently made a cameo of his own on the prequel series. In the Season 3 episode, Padelecki’s unnamed character has a scene with Walker alum Matt Barr’s Hoyt Rawlins. The pair meet while trying to rob a train. They exchange a joke and consider partnering up, though that never comes to fruition. Instead, the two thieves draw their guns on each other. Hoyt comes out victorious.
Cortez’s episode airdate is still to be determined.
