Willie Robertson Steps Back From Duck Commander Amidst Family Changes and Poignant Losses

It is tough to imagine Duck Commander without Phil Robertson in charge. But even before his recent passing, the Robertson family was already dealing with Phil stepping back from his role as the head of the Duck Dynasty world. This happened after his early Alzheimer's diagnosis in December 2024. The first episode of A+E's new show, Duck Dynasty: The Revival, gives us a look at how those family talks went down.

"Here's the thing I was thinking about: You have worked really hard for a long time, and I feel like, maybe you're going through a few things right now," Korie Robertson tells her husband Willie on the premiere. Korie often tries to get Willie to open up. He is usually not one to show his feelings. This show reminds me of how real families deal with hard situations.

Willie took over as CEO of Duck Commander from Phil in 2002. This company, which Phil started, sells hunting gear and clothes. It has grown into a big business with a publishing house, a production company, a podcast studio, and more. Willie handled most of the daily work at the Duck Commander office in West Monroe, Louisiana. But for all six years of Duck Dynasty, Phil was still president of the company. His strong personality also made him the public face of the business. This was true even after some controversial comments he made in 2013 led A+E to temporarily remove him from the show.

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In a quiet moment at home during the fast-paced Revival premiere, Korie asks Willie to talk about his larger-than-life father being suddenly absent from the daily work at Duck Commander. "We're in that middle place of, like, taking care of aging parents, and taking care of kids and grandkids still. How are you doing with all this?" she asks. For a moment, she thinks she will get an honest answer.

"I'm totally, 100-percent fine," Willie says. His voice shakes a little. He is chopping vegetables for a big pot of stew for some of his six adult children with Korie. Willie starts to tear up. Korie quickly moves to his side to comfort him. "I know it's not very Robertson to talk about your feelings, but you could talk about your feelings. I'm proud of you, babe," she tells him. Willie, without any sign of being sentimental, replies, "God, those are the strongest onions. They're burning the crap out of my eyes. You don't smell them?"

Korie knows she has hit the well-known Robertson wall. No soft emotions are allowed past it. So she explains Willie's feelings for him in a separate interview. "So recently, Willie's dad was diagnosed with early Alzheimer's, and it's been a struggle for all of us," she shares. The Robertson household is a busy one. Besides Willie and Korie’s six kids—Rebecca John Luke Sadie Bella Will and Rowdy—their Louisiana home also has Willie’s mother Kay Willie’s three brothers their spouses and their eight children. Willie’s uncle Si and his wife Christine also live nearby. This big family means a lot of people are affected by what happens with Phil.

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Korie believes that with so much responsibility as the new head of Duck Commander, and the Robertson family, Willie would not want to admit it. But she definitely thinks Phil’s health has impacted Willie. She feels it has made him think hard about his own family story and what he leaves behind. Willie announces on the premiere episode that he is "fully semi-retiring" as CEO of Duck Commander. With so many possible people to take over and without his dad's advice, this season of Duck Dynasty: The Revival might feel a bit like a competition for who is next in line.

A lot has happened since the original show ended in 2017. The kids are older now. Willie is a grandpa. The warehouse now holds several businesses all working at the same time. These include a museum, a gift shop, podcasts, books, and more. Willie’s wife Korie has been managing different parts of the business. In scenes filmed at the family headquarters, we saw daughter Bella running the gift shop and helping at the museum. John Luke is involved in managing the coffee business. He has come a long way since the early days of blowing things up and getting dental work on TV.

Willie also found his office had been redone. It is now a counseling area for daughter Sadie’s Live Original ministry. She was recording an episode of her podcast "Whoa That’s Good" when Willie walked in unexpectedly. He came in just as the hosts were talking about worry and mental health. Fans got updates on the Robertson kids, who have greatly expanded. There are now three spouses and seven grandchildren. Jacob is Bella’s husband. Christian is Sadie’s husband and they have two daughters. John Luke and his wife Mary Kate have three children. Rebecca and her husband have two kids with a third coming soon. They all live on the same property. Youngest son Rowdy is away at college. Will and his wife Abby live in Texas but come home often.

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Willie found some peace relaxing in his replica office in the museum. The company was hosting a meeting. Martin gave updates about office rules. He showed a layout of the office and pointed out specific "places you are permitted to poop." Willie was next. He announced his full semi-retirement. He started thinking about who would take over the family business. He sent a text asking for a mandatory family duck hunting meeting at 4 AM. The family arrived but clearly not on time. They split into groups. Will failed right away by wearing a white shirt which is a bad idea for duck hunting. Willie had actually planned skeet shooting. He only gave them one shell each. The kids did not hit the target but Willie showed them how it was done.

Then we moved to October 30, 2024. Rebecca gave birth to Xander, Willie’s newest grandson. Willie and Korie were making food when Rebecca and John Reed came back from the hospital with their newborn. Korie was worried about how Willie was acting. They are now at a time in their lives where they are caring for older parents while still raising kids and grandkids. She thought it might also have to do with Willie’s father Phil and his Alzheimer’s diagnosis. Maybe it made Willie think about his own legacy. It was a touching moment for fans. Just when Korie thought Willie was about to open up, he teared up and said, "Those are the strongest onions burning the crap out of my eyes."

"Faith, family and ducks in that order," Korie explained. "That’s the way we’ve always been and live our lives." The other family members also thought Willie was acting strangely. He decided that maybe he did not need to find a "new him" and that he was doing fine. He realized he would be okay even if the kids did not grow up exactly like him. He felt that now he was fully semi-retired, he had a lot of free time. He had some ideas about what to do with it. We will find out more in future episodes. Something tells me the feathers will soon fly. Some things change, but many stay the same.