It’s not often that the highest-rated series on a specific network gets canceled, but that’s exactly what happened to Longmire back in 2014 after airing faithfully on A&E for three seasons. This Western mystery show, which appealed generally to older demographics, was deemed “A&E’s highest-rated original drama series of all time,” and promptly found new life on Netflix. The show ran for three more seasons before ending again in 2017, and we haven’t quite gotten over it. But now is the perfect time for Robert Taylor to return as the hardened, well-read sheriff of Absaroka County, and it’s been a long time coming.

‘Longmire’ Can Fill the Void Left by ‘Yellowstone’

Ever since Longmire ended, the Taylor Sheridan-helmed Yellowstone has dominated the Western TV space. While not a mystery series like Longmire, the Paramount Network original scratches many of the neo-Western itches left behind by Walt and his friends. With Kevin Costner front and center and Longmire co-creator John Covney named a producer in the show’s early years, Yellowstone has become nothing short of a television empire in a short time, producing two prequels, multiple in-development spin-offs, and plenty of derivative works that ride off Sheridan and Costner’s success. But the one thing Yellowstone doesn’t have is Sheriff Walt Longmire, and that’s only one of the many reasons Longmire is the superior series.

But with the flagship Yellowstone series wrapping up in 2024 and Costner departing the franchise in favor of his upcoming multipart epic, Horizon: An American Saga, now seems like the right time for Longmire to reclaim its Western throne. In many ways, Yellowstone thrives because of its gorgeous landscapes, talented cast, and dark material, but these are all things that Longmire has going for it as well. To make things even more interesting, Longmire also has the mystery factor that keeps audiences on the edge of their seat. While the Paramount series is slowing down to a crawl, Longmire never once felt like a chore to watch, even in its final season.

Paramount has proven that Western-themed material can go a long way these days, especially on streaming. Likewise, Prime Video’s Jack Ryan, The Terminal List, and Reacher have reminded us that action and mystery novel adaptations do just as well, maybe even better in some cases. Well, Longmire has all of these things, and with the plethora of Craig Johnson‘s original Walt Longmire books behind it, could easily return as if it never left. While it’s not likely that Longmire will ever return for good, we’ll take anything we can get. Even if it’s a 90-minute Netflix Original or a six-episode limited series, Walt Longmire has been missed, and it’s time that he, and in turn we, return to Absaroka.

Walt Longmire Is the Thoughtful Western Hero We Need More of Today

Image via Netflix

Perhaps the biggest reason Walt Longmire is missed these days is due to the serious lack of complicated and learned Western heroes. The Duttons on Yellowstone are complicated, sure, but not exactly heroic. Michael Dorman‘s Joe Pickett from the Paramount mystery series of the same name is heroic and complicated, but not exactly the smartest tool in the shed (a Longmire/Pickett crossover would be a dream come true, though). But Walt Longmire is all of these things. Though he doesn’t always get it right, Walt is a master of deduction from the Sherlock Holmes school of thought and can put together just about any mystery you throw at him. But more than that, he’s a likable guy who grew a lot over the six years we followed him.

While there are some differences between the book and TV versions of Walt Longmire, Robert Taylor plays the character perfectly. His unique, gruffish charm and rustic take on the character make audiences wish that we could “Vote Longmire” every time. His use of books like Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and John Steinbeck‘s Of Mice and Men as the basis for his unique brand of law enforcement is both admirable and interesting, and his attempts to get his deputies to read the same sorts of stories, while often futile, is endearing. Walt is a complex man who isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty or tackle hard issues that aren’t easily solved, but even when he does so, he doesn’t cross certain lines. An honorable and consistent lawman, Walt Longmire is the type of protagonist you rarely see much of these days, including in the contemporary Western genre.

Of course, Robert Taylor deserves a lot of praise for how well Walt Longmire was received. The Australian actor––who thrived in the role and hasn’t quite found the same sort of success on American television since––embodies the character perfectly and has often interacted with fans, particularly at the annual “Longmire Days” celebration in Buffalo, Wyoming. (Yes, there is a “Longmire Days” festival every year in Wyoming, which celebrates the character, which may be enough proof of why we need more Longmire sooner rather than later.)

‘Longmire’ Is Still as Popular as Ever, and There’s a Good Reason for That

Image via Netflix

Although it’s been nearly a decade since Longmire last dropped an episode, the show has retained a consistently faithful audience on streaming ever since. Walt Longmire author Craig Johnson noted on his Facebook on February 1, 2024, that Longmire is still scoring as #3 in Westerns on Netflix. No wonder it shows up so consistently on our list of Best Westerns to watch on the streamer, it really is that good. With six seasons and 63 episodes, Longmire is one of those shows that’s easy to revisit and harder to walk away from. Its impressive cast, which includes Katee Sackhoff, Lou Diamond Phillips, and Bailey Chase, is always a blast to watch on screen and is just as notable as Robert Taylor’s Walt. The friendship between Walt and his best friend Henry Standing Bear (Phillips) could easily carry the series on its own.

But according to Johnson, we may have been robbed of more Longmire. The author revealed that previously, A&E had hoped to buy Longmire from Warner Bros., but the studio wouldn’t sell the brand, so the network canceled the series. A&E lost nearly a third of its audience as a result, only for Netflix to swoop in and continue the series. “[Longmire] quickly became one of the highest-rated, original-content shows [Netflix] ever had,” Johnson explained in 2022 (via Cowboy State Daily). “Smooth sailing for two more seasons and then guess what? Netflix wanted Warner Brothers to sell Longmire to them.” No wonder Netflix too tried to buy it themselves, but knowing the gold mine they had on their hands, Warner Bros. refused to sell. At least this time, Longmire was able to conclude naturally.

“There’s a constant buzz about the return of the series, a potential Season 7 or made-for-TV movies, but nothing concrete,” Johnson continued, explaining that both Warner Bros. and Netflix have noted Longmire‘s success on the streaming platform even long after its cancelation. “Once again, victims of our own success,” he remarked. But if Netflix and Warner Bros. were to play ball for another Walt Longmire production, they’d discover the sort of success that would make Tom Selleck‘s Jesse Stone series jealous. And likely without much effort at all.

Craig Johnson’s Two-Part ‘Longmire’ Mystery Would Be the Perfect Basis for a Return

While Longmire often diverted from the original Craig Johnson-penned source material, the show occasionally adapted elements from the books to the screen. The very first Longmire novel, The Cold Dish, for example, was directly adapted in the Season 1 episode “Unfinished Business.” Likewise, elements of The Dark Horse appeared in “A Damn Shame,” and Hell is Empty was loosely adapted in Season 2’s “Unquiet Mind.” As the show continued, Longmire borrowed less and less from the Johnson series, instead opting to develop new storylines and continue the arcs of original series characters like Jacob Nighthorse (A Martinez), which is understandable given how interesting Nighthorse can be.

But there’s an arc from the original Walt Longmire Mysteries that would be the perfect catalyst to bring Walt back for more, despite having all but handed over his title as sheriff to his daughter Cady (Cassidy Freeman). In the thirteenth novel, The Western Star, Johnson weaves a tale between Walt’s past and present in an homage to Agatha Christie that thrills you the whole way. The dueling narrative centers on Walt reflecting on an old mystery from his early days as a lawman on a passenger locomotive known as the Western Star. The story seamlessly weaves Walt’s past (something Longmire never delved much into) with his present, and ends with a serious cliffhanger as his longtime nemesis, Tomás Bidarte, kidnaps his daughter.

A cartel man who has been called “a Moriarty to Walt’s Holmes” by some, Bidarte tragically never appeared on the Longmire show, though he would’ve fit in perfectly. With his television foes, Chance Gilbert (Peter Stormare) and Malachi Strand (Graham Greene of Echo fame), taken care of in the show’s final season, a Longmire reunion could easily return to the character’s roots and pit him against his literary adversary. The second part of the narrative, Depth of Winter, takes Walt to Mexico in an admittedly controversial installment due to his separation from Wyoming. Of course, the book would likely be adapted differently for the series. Here, Walt plays the part of the traditional Western hero and manages to pull off the impossible, rescuing Cady from Bidarte and dispatching his nemesis for good. It’s an excellent two-parter and one that the minds behind Longmire would do well to adapt to the Netflix series in some form.

More Walt Longmire Mysteries Are Underway, Even if the Show Never Returns

Even if we never get another live-action Walt Longmire adaptation again (and we certainly hope we do), we can rest knowing that there are plenty of Longmire adventures out there and even more still underway. Of course, we’re talking about the previously mentioned Craig Johnson series of books. While they differ from the television show, the Longmire books are exciting reads that any fan of the character can enjoy. Though this author recommends starting at the beginning with The Cold Dish, plenty of new Walt Longmire mysteries have made their way into bookstores ever since the show ended in 2017. The aforementioned Depth of Winter was published in 2018 and every year since, a new Longmire novel has made it to bookshelves everywhere.

The most recent Longmire novel, The Longmire Defense, dropped in September 2023 and follows Walt as he seeks to clear his ancestor’s name. The next book, First Frost, will explore Walt and Henry’s past as they’re drafted for the Vietnam War and the road trip across Route 66 they took together just before their deployment; it’s set to be released on May 28. If reading isn’t quite your thing, excellent audio productions of each of Craig Johnson’s Walt Longmire novels have been made, read by George Guidall, who fits the bill perfectly. Of course, we hope that Netflix and Warner Bros. might one day work together so that Robert Taylor and company can return for more Longmire, but until then we’ll just have to wonder if he ever found that buried treasure Lucian was going on about.