“Gilmore Girls”’ Lauren Graham and Scott Patterson Have the Perfect Answer for Where Their Characters Would Be (Exclusive)

The 'Gilmore Girls' costars talked exclusively to PEOPLE about briefly returning to Stars Hollow for a new Walmart ad

Lauren Graham and Scott Patterson are briefly returning to Stars Hollow for a nostalgic new Walmart ad. 

As Walmart celebrates the holidays and the season of giving, they’re bringing together some of the most iconic duos across film and television, including the Gilmore Girls costars. 

In the 30-second ad, Graham, 57, and Patterson, 66, reprise their iconic roles as Lorelai and Luke as Sean Gunn (who reprises his role as fan-favorite Kirk) drops off a special delivery at Luke’s Diner. True to form, Luke gifts his coffee-obsessed wife a Keurig to further fuel her caffeine addiction, joking she’s “drinking him out of business.” 

Amping up the warm and cozy feelings, the clip ends with the two standing in the center of Stars Hollow as Lorelai basks in the wintry mix falling from the sky. (“I smell snow!”) 

Ahead of the ad’s release, PEOPLE exclusively spoke with Graham and Patterson about sharing the screen together again following Netflix’s 2016 revival, Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life.

“It's always a little surreal [returning to Stars Hollow], because we were back where we've been so many times,” Graham admits to PEOPLE, adding that filming the ad was especially nostalgic as she had her TV daughter on set — and no, it wasn’t who you think. 

“It was a particularly odd day for me because there's just so much familiarity with that character and seeing Scott and being in that place. And then Mae Whitman, my TV daughter from another universe, was there with her baby. It was just really, really fun and a great opportunity.” 

Graham and Whitman previously played mother-daughter on 2010’s Parenthood and Whitman later made a small cameo in the Gilmore Girls revival alongside Graham and her other TV daughter, Alexis Bledel (Rory Gilmore). 

Related: Gilmore Girls Writer Reveals the One Bombshell Twist That 'Bothered' Him About the Netflix Revival (Exclusive)

For Patterson, he says the highlight of doing the ad was getting to work alongside Graham again, whom he calls his “favorite scene partner of [his] entire career.” 

“I've never worked with anybody with a better skill set, more grit and just this incredible stamina among the other things that she brings with her humor and her kindness,” he gushes of Graham. “So it was a real kick in the pants. I got to tell you. I can't see very well now, without my glasses and I was walking onto the set, and I saw this very attractive woman with dark hair. And as I got closer, it turned into Lauren.” 

“It was just wonderful to see her and work with her again and Sean as well,” Patterson continues, noting his character Kirk’s special cameo. “I'll always cherish the time I got to spend with Lauren and act with her because she's literally an icon. And that is just growing as the years go by.” 

The new ad is a special treat for Gilmore Girls fans who have been craving more episodes after Netflix’s hit revival in 2016, which followed the characters almost a decade after the original series. 

When it comes to more episodes, both Graham and Patterson agree that the power is in the hands of creator Amy Sherman-Palladino and her husband, Daniel Palladino. 

“If anybody could write a compelling story with the characters that mature, it would be Amy and Dan,” Patterson notes. “I wouldn't even venture a guess how they would do it or what it would look or feel like, but I'm sure it would be fantastic in every way.” 

In the revival, fans watched many pivotal moments unfold for the beloved characters, including (warning: spoilers) Luke and Lorelai’s wedding and the shocking revelation that Rory is pregnant. Though viewers never learn who the father is in the revival, Patterson and Graham do have a good idea of how their characters would be as grandparents. 

“What is most probable is that they're exactly the same,” Graham states. “I don't think Lorelai left the country to find herself or anything. I think she is running an inn or maybe a second inn and hitting Luke's up every day for her coffee unless she's making it at home with the thoughtful gift you gave her for Christmas. That's what I would want from where are they today is pretty much in the same place.” 

“I think that's the appeal of these characters in the first place is that they'll get older, but we can rely on them not to change,” Patterson adds. 

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Related: 'Gilmore Girls' Cast: Where Are They Now?

While the show had a huge following during its seven-season run from 2000 to 2007, it has continued to gain new audiences today through streaming, which Graham believes is a testament to the writing. 

“It's a classic because it doesn't adhere to a specific time,” she says. “It feels very timeless, and it wasn't hip or trendy when we made it. And it's still kind of isn't, but it's just its own world. It's also such a comforting place to visit.” 

“The characters are fantastic. The actors are fantastic. But it's really the writing,” she adds. “If you were 12 years old, you got it on a certain level. And then if you re-watch it 5, 10, 20 years later, you get different references. And it's just the language has such a music to it. I think it's putting on a record that you really love, and you kind of hear something new every time. Or you're just enjoying what you already know. So I think it just hit that rare sweet spot of comfort plus incredible writing.”