The Unkillable ‘Wynonna Earp’ Will Return for One Last Ride

Andras hastened to add that while she wants to give Earpers a great ride with Vengeance, which will feature a revenge-driven female villain, the special is also designed to be newbie-friendly: “I hope it’s a gateway drug,” she said, to the full series, which is available in the US on Netflix.

The character Wynonna Earp originated in a comic book created by Beau Smith; she is a descendant of the legendary Wyatt Earp, and as Andras put it, “Being the descendant of a hero is a curse, both metaphorically and literally.” Early on in the show, a reluctant Wynonna is tasked with protecting the small town of Purgatory from undead varmints known as revenants.

Following the drama’s debut in 2016, its storytelling, themes, and onscreen family expanded deliciously. If you like comedically inflected action, whiskey, donuts, hot romances, and storylines about angels, this is the show for you. At one point there’s a subplot about killer trees, because of course there is.

There are some constants amid the Purgatory chaos. (As Andras told the cast during the reunion: “Don’t be nervous, because the mess is our brand.”) Among them are Wynonna’s unbreakable familial bond with Waverly; Doc and Wynonna’s undeniable connection; and Waverly’s romantic relationship with local cop Nicole Haught, which has, over the years, launched many, many LGBTQ-friendly memes, sites, and testimonials. (Did I wear only a “Purgatory Pride” T-shirt for most of the pandemic? None of your business!)

Quip-slinging, acerbic, deeply loyal Wynonna “inherits this magic gun that can kill demons from her great-great-great-grandfather Earp. And then it’s about her kind of being with this other posse of dipshits—the kind of people who are usually kind of on the margins of Westerns,” Andras explained. “An immortal Doc Holliday, her little baby sister, this kick-ass sheriff of the town, [all] forming this family to fight evil in a very dysfunctional, fun, real way. We have lots of feels, lots of dirty jokes, and lots of tears, and maybe a little bit of disgusting Tarantino gore, if you’re lucky.”

It makes for a rollicking, addictive, emotionally engaging mixture, which is part of the reason the cast and creative team have been hot tickets on the convention circuit for some time. Andras has also stayed in touch with former Syfy executive Josh Van Houdt, who is now Tubi’s vice president of scripted original content. In recent months, he and Andras discussed the possibility of a new Wynonna special, and when Van Houdt brought it to Adam Lewinson, Tubi’s chief content officer, he was immediately on board.

So were many members of the show’s crew. Some couldn’t make it due to scheduling conflicts, but Scrofano is already planning a party for them. That homecoming with the behind-the-scenes family “will feel really good,” she said. As for the onscreen shenanigans, she also confessed to being nervous about “refilling those boots,” but “with Emily and Paolo at the helm, we’re good.”

Nearly three years after the show ended on another TV homestead—in what already feels like a bygone era—the show’s fans will “be rewarded for holding out hope,” Scrofano added. “Sometimes in life, you hold out hope for things and your hopes get dashed. And this is just reaffirming that sometimes you just have to keep the hope alive.”