Matt Czuchry Once Called ‘Gilmore Girls’ a ‘Training Ground’

Since starring in Gilmore Girls in the early 2000s, Matt Czuchry has landed bigger and bigger roles. Czuchry’s current role in The Resident is much different than the super-wealthy Yale student he played in Gilmore Girls, but his time on the series has still informed his career. The famed actor once called Gilmore Girls a “training ground.”

Matt Czuchry played Logan Huntzberger on ‘Gilmore Girls’

Czuchry portrayed Logan Huntzberger for three seasons on Gilmore Girls. Logan, the son of a media mogul, met Rory Gilmore when she was a sophomore at Yale. Initially intrigued by Rory, playboy Logan opted to keep his distance. Eventually, Rory and Logan began dating. The couple grew together through ups and downs but parted ways at the end of the series. Their breakup wasn’t the last fans would see of Logan, though. He also appeared in the Netflix revival, Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life. 

Czuchry’s role in Gilmore Girls is a controversial one. Some fans adore Logan, while others remain angry that he prevented Rory Gilmore from returning to Jess Mariano. Logan’s revival behavior didn’t earn him any extra points, either. When fans last left the beloved town of Stars Hollow, Rory was pregnant, presumably by Logan, and he was set to marry an heiress named Odette.

He called the series his ‘training ground’

Czuchry’s role in Gilmore Girls was his first major acting job. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, he explained that the series was his first full-time gig and served as a way for him to continue to learn his craft. He said the series was a “training ground” for him and that many of the stars and crew helped him along the way.

He went on to tell the publication that he was open to learning and that the team was gracious enough to teach him. Czuchry wasn’t an exception. He was far from the only actor who cut their teeth on Gilmore Girls. Showrunner, Amy Sherman-Palladino, made it a bit of a habit to hire new actors for large roles. The series was the first acting job for Alexis Bledel, too. Bledel portrayed Rory Gilmore.

Wayne Wilcox, the actor who portrayed Rory’s friend, Marty, was also unknown when he joined the cast. According to TV Guide, Wilcox was discovered by Sherman-Palladino and Dan Palladino when he waited on their table at Mercer Kitchen in New York. Chad Michael Murray got his start on the series, too. Murray portrayed Tristan Dugray in the show’s first two seasons before landing his roles on Dawson’s Creek and One Tree Hill. 

Was ‘Gilmore Girls’ Czuchry’s first role, though? 

Most fans remember Czuchry as Logan. It makes sense; It was his first major role, or, at the very least, it was his first major role on a successful series. Before Gilmore Girls, Czuchry landed a part on Freaks & Geeks. In the short-lived series, Czuchry’s character didn’t have a name. More memorably, he briefly appeared in Young Americans, a fledgling series that only aired eight episodes before the network canceled it. Czuchry appeared in five episodes. 

Since Gilmore Girls, things have taken off. First, Czuchry appeared in The Good Wife and had a role in Friday Night Lights. These days, he stars in The Resident, playing Conrad Hawkins, a chief resident at Chastain Park Memorial Hospital. While many shows were canceled or renewed in the last week, there is still no word on whether The Resident will return to Fox for a sixth season.