Reports Indicate Emilio Estevez Will Not Return For Second Season of "The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers"

While The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers is set to return to Disney+ for a second season, star Emilio Estevez will not be, according to Deadline.

What’s Happening:

Emilio Estevez, who reprised his role from the classic 1992 film, The Mighty Ducks, where he played coach Gordon Bombay, will not be back to portray the character in the second season of The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers.
Reportedly, Estevez’s reps have declined to provide assurances that he would comply with new COVID-19 vaccination policies in place for the production, with the studio exercising the actor’s option with the scripts (currently being written with production starting early next year) being adjusted to continue the story without the character.
However, other reports indicate creative differences may have also played a part in the actor’s departure from the series.
The first season of The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers saw Estevez reprise his role of Coach Gordon Bombay, a character he has played across three films, and now, three decades as he brought the character into the new series.
Set in present day Minnesota, the Mighty Ducks have evolved from scrappy underdogs to an ultra-competitive, powerhouse youth hockey team. After 12-year-old Evan Morrow (Brady Noon) is unceremoniously cut from the Ducks, he and his mom, Alex (Lauren Graham), set out to build their own team of misfits to challenge the cutthroat, win-at-all-costs culture of youth sports today. With the help of Gordon Bombay, they rediscover the joys of playing just for love of the game.
Disney TV Studios has adopted the Zone A Vaccination policy on all its productions going forward, including on existing shows like The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers. “Zone A” includes all actors and crew members who come into direct contact with them. This policy was included in the most recent Return-to-Work agreement between the Hollywood Studios and major unions. The policy is quickly becoming an industry standard, and is expanding quickly. Netflix has also adopted the policy for its U.S. Productions.
No premiere date has been announced for the second season of The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers, but you can catch up with the first season now streaming on Disney+.