A blue backwards baseball cap and a plaid shirt. That is Luke Danes’ signature look and one that makes “Gilmore Girls” fans ache for a cup (or more) of coffee.
Scott Patterson has been able to return to Stars Hollow, the picture-perfect town from the hit show, over the years, most recently for a Walmart commercial where he reunited with leading lady Lauren Graham. And now, for a brief period, guests will be able to visit the fictional Connecticut town themselves as part of the Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood.
“This place is where I made my bones,” Patterson tells TODAY.com while sitting in the original Luke’s Diner, re-created for the ad and Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood “Holidays Made Here!” event.
“Everything about this brings back great memories of creating scenes. This is where we rehearsed the scenes, made and molded those scenes, and I’m just very proud of it. It’s sacred ground.”
What it was like to be ‘Luke and Lorelai’ again
In early December, Walmart released a 30-second ad sees Kirk (Sean Gunn) delivering a package to Luke at his diner. The box is actually a gift for coffee-obsessed Lorelai.
The actor’s return to the fictional Connecticut town came eight years after Netflix’s “Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life,” and 17 years since the WB and CW show ended.
When the opportunity to reprise Luke for the holiday commercial came up, the actor instantly said yes to reuniting with Graham.
“It felt very real and natural, the way it always does,” he says about working alongside his former on-screen love interest. “(Lauren’s) very easy to work with. We only had a couple of lines each, so it was gonna be hard to screw it up.”
“So it was just delightful. It was fun. There was no pressure. It felt like being back shooting the show,” he says.
“Gilmore Girls” premiered in 2000, running for seven seasons until 2007. The show has since been rediscovered by new generations, and has made its way onto social media for people to dissect the Gilmore girls’ lives and love interests.
“The pilot is near and dear to my heart because it’s the first time I realized how special the chemistry was between Lauren and I,” Patterson says about one of his favorite “Gilmore Girl” moments. “I saw how skilled she was and I thought, ‘Oh, this is gonna be fun.’”
There was, however, a moment when the actor felt he needed to disassociate himself from Luke.
“I think when I was filming the show, I needed breaks from Luke because there’s so many hours you put in,” he says. “But as I was experiencing unemployment in the business — because having a steady job in this business is really tough to get — when you have one, you really feel lucky. When it goes away, you realize how good you had it.”
Patterson says he “really started thinking about embracing” Luke during “A Year in the Life.”
“When we were doing the episodes again, I thought, ‘This is a really, really interesting phenomenon because it’s on Netflix,” he continues. “Now people are able to download it. It’s growing its global footprint, it’s growing the fan base. There seems to be new generations discovering it.”
How fans can visit Stars Hollow themselves
Now having people visit the real-life set as part of the Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood in California, which will be on display until Jan. 5, will be extra special, he says. Fans will even be able to walk into Luke’s and order coffee.
Patterson shares that he usually takes his “black, little bit of honey.”
He also reveals that he used to hide $100 bills in one of the shelves every season, “And it would always survive. Very trustworthy people.” Adding, “It’s not there now.”
Also included in the tour are Lorelai’s house, Kim’s Antiques, Doose’s Market, and more locations with props used in the show.
“I invested a lot of myself into this space and I can feel it in the room. When I walked back in, it hit me still,” he says, before sharing another place that was particularly emotional for him. “I was just over at the Dragonfly Inn set … and they have a private room that they thought would be a good idea to put Richard and Emily’s dining room set in there from the Gilmore house.”
“And I walked in and it just got me because it’s the original furniture,” he says, sharing how he paid tribute to the late Edward Herrmann who portrayed Richard Gilmore. “I went over to Ed Herrmann’s chair, Richard’s chair, and touched it, and it all just flooded back.”
Calling it an overwhelming and emotional experience, he says being back in Stars Hollow fills him with “deep joy” and hopes fans feel that too.