‘Duck Dynasty’ revival star Willie Robertson warned of kids’ plot to replace him

Something is rotten in the state of Louisiana.

Massive changes are underfoot on Duck Dynasty: The Revival, which premiered Sunday, and not everyone is convinced they’re for good. Especially uncle Si, a.k.a. Silas Merritt Robertson, brother of O.G. Duck Dynasty kingpin Phil Robertson, who died on May 25 at 79, and Phil’s son Willie Robertson, who’s been CEO of the Duck Commander company behind the reality empire since 2002.

The Revival comes eight years after Duck Dynasty aired its last episode on A+E. Though Willie had decades earlier taken the reins of the hunting gear and apparel company that has turned the extended Robertson family into TV royalty, Phil’s stepping back in December amid his early Alzheimer’s diagnosis still left a considerable void within Duck Commander. And if you’re Si, Willie announcing on the Revival premiere that he’s “fully semi-retiring” as CEO, that void starts to look a lot more like a power vacuum.

While taping an episode of their Duck Call Room podcast, Si, Willie, and Si’s co-hosts John-David Owen, Jay Stone, and Justin Martin get into a conversation about succession where, in typical fashion, Si makes his feelings abundantly clear.

“You’re way too young to retire, son,” Si tells Willie. “I’m not retiring, I’m semi-retiring,” he contends. Si jokes that Willie’s unclear characterization of his personal restructuring is “the same thing as when he says, ‘I work’ — nothing.”

Willie explains that he isn’t yet fully stepping back, only limiting his capacities while he starts “looking for who’s going to be my replacement, who’s going to be the face, who’s going to be my successor.”

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John-David and Justin Martin, called Martin, suggest “an obstacle course” to determine which of Willie’s six children with wife Korie is the most fitting pick for CEO. Si heartily agrees, adding, “Here’s how you pick the next leader of Duck Commander: You gotta put ’em through the ringer.” But he takes it one step further.

“I’m telling you I’m worried about you, ’cause it sounds like one of your children is plotting a conspiracy to take you out,” he tells Willie.

“Come on Si, nobody is planning that,” Willie sighs in exasperation, but Si digs his feet in: “Hey, that’s what they did all over Europe.”

The crew then consider Willie’s options: There’s Rebecca, Willie and Korie’s foster daughter, whom Martin praises as “fluent in social media.” Then there’s Willie and Korie’s eldest son, John Luke, who “grew up in the business,” Willie notes. He then praises Sadie, another of their daughters and the enterprising host of the WHOA, That’s Good podcast, as being a “strong option” with a “good resume.” Willie considers Bella, their youngest daughter, a “wild card,” but Si voices his approval, observing, “Bella makes a good candidate, already works here.”

As the premiere episode coasts to an end, the Robertsons do put their progeny through an obstacle course, but the hunt for the new Duck Commander CEO continues. Harkening back to his warning of “what they did all over Europe,” Si tells Willie one last time, “Hey, if you don’t know your history, you repeat it, buddy.”

Duck Dynasty: The Revival premiered on June 1 and airs new episode every Sunday at 9 p.m. ET/PT on A+E.