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Scott Patterson spent seven years playing Luke Danes in Gilmore Girls. He reprised the role again in 2016 and has spent several years discussing the show on his podcast and in interviews. In a recent interview, the actor decided to make a pretty controversial statement. Patterson revealed that, unlike fans of the beloved show, he did not hate his character’s season 6 storyline.

Scott Patterson doesn’t hate Luke Danes’ long-lost daughter storyline

In Gilmore Girls Season 6, Luke and Lorelai Gilmore get back together and plan to marry. They were headed for the altar when a 12-year-old showed up in Luke’s diner, proclaiming he might be her father.

Luke later learns that he did, in fact, father the child with a long-forgotten love interest. While Luke built a relationship with April Nardini, he inadvertently iced Lorelai out, causing a significant rift. April, her mother Anna Nardini, and Luke’s behavior led to a called-off engagement and the end of his romance with Lorelai.

'Gilmore Girls' star Vanessa Marano as April Nardini
Vanessa Marano as April Nardini | Suzanne Hanover/Netflix

Gilmore Girls fans almost universally agree that the storyline was horrible, but Scott Patterson doesn’t think so. In an interview with ScreenRant, Patterson revealed that he enjoyed the storyline.

“Sometimes you’ve got to piss off the fans,’ Patterson said. “It’s a risk you take, but the payoff is so great. It doesn’t ruin anything. It just sort of deepens the sort of comeback that’s required.”

Patterson went on to praise Vanessa Marano, the actor who took on the role of April Nardini, insisting she was so impressive as as young actor. He said he wished fans hadn’t been so hard on her back then.

Scott Patterson might have explained why fans hated the storyline so much

While Patterson understands why the storyline didn’t sit well with fans, he insists it was a risk the show had to take. He told the publication that despite how distasteful fans found it, he thinks the storyline deepened Luke and Lorelai’s “comeback.”

Lorelai and Luke walk down the street holding hands in an episode of 'GIlmore GIrls: A Year in the Life'
Luke Danes and Lorelai Gilmore | Saeed Adyani/Netflix
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Patterson makes a valid point. He might have stumbled upon why Gilmore Girls fans hate the storyline so much, even after many rewatches. Patterson argues that there is a payoff in the end because Luke and Lorelai had to claw their way back. He might be correct, but he’s missing one crucial factor: fans never actually go to see that.

The show’s cancelation was a surprise, meaning many storylines weren’t completely wrapped up. Luke and Lorelai’s love story was still very open-ended when the series wrapped. Sure, they seemed to be contemplating working things out, but they hadn’t started yet when fans last left them. When fans did reconnect with them during Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, they had already been back together for years. The show’s sudden cancelation made fans miss out on the “payoff” of adding Arpil Nardini and her meddling mother to the storyline.

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