When George W. Bush took office in the early 2000’s, liberal snowflakes like myself sought refuge in Aaron Sorkin’s West Wing. For many, Jed Bartlet occupied the White House between Clinton and Obama. With an even worse megalomaniac now residing within 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, the time would seem ripe for a West Wing revival (especially after Kevin Spacey blew up House of Cards). Well, the show’s creator, Aaron Sorkin, has at least been thinking about it. He even has a preliminary framework for the plot.
Sorkin’s idea, as told to The Hollywood Reporter, would be to cast Sterling K. Brown (of This Is Us fame) as president. “There’s some kind of jam, an emergency, a very delicate situation involving the threat of war or something, and [President] Bartlet [played by Martin Sheen], long since retired, is consulted in the way that Bill Clinton used to consult with Nixon,” Sorkin explained.
The sticking point, according to Sorkin, is how he’d incorporate other favorite characters such as Press Secretary – turned – Chief of Staff C.J. Cregg (Allison Janney) or Deputy Chief of Staff – turned – Matthew Santos’ righthand man Josh Lyman (Bradley Whitford).
Whether or not Aaron Sorkin follows goes through with a revival is anyone’s guess. Perhaps his comments are a trial balloon to gauge interest from networks? One would imagine they’d be chomping at the bit under any scenario.
In the meantime, please enjoy one of my all-time favorite clips:
