Lorelai ends her relationship with Max by abruptly leaving town on their wedding day, and has several other relationships before ultimately ending up with Luke Danes (Scott Patterson).

While several of Lorelai's exes make appearances in A Year In The Life, Max is notably absent. Lorelai's other exes, Christopher Hayden (David Sutcliffe) and Jason "Digger" Stiles (Chris Eigeman) appear in A Year In The Life because both still have ties to Lorelai's life years after their relationships with her. Christopher is Rory's father, and Jason is a friend and business partner of Lorelai's late father, Richard Gilmore (Edward Hermann). Since Max has no connection to Lorelai anymore, it only made sense for him to be absent from the revival of the show.

Why Max Medina Wasn't In Gilmore Girls: A Year In The Life

The Series Creator Said It Felt Unnatural Including The Character

Max Medina is a character of Lorelai's past. Now that Rory is in her 30s in A Year In The Life, it would feel unnatural for Lorelai to have kept in touch with him for so many years after how things ended now that Rory is an adult. Lorelai's breakups with Jason and Christopher were far more final and concrete, whereas she instead once left Max at the altar. Not only has Lorelai moved on, but Max appears to have left town too.

Series creator Amy Sherman Palladino told Entertainment Weekly that she could not find a way for Max to return for A Year In The Life. “One person I didn’t figure out how to get in was Scott Cohen, whom we love so much. Not that we’re not still thinking about him, but we couldn’t figure out how to get Max in there,” the Gilmore Girls creator explained. “We had so much story. We left storylines on the cutting room floor before we started.”

Sherman Palladino has previously stated that she and several cast are always open to another Gilmore Girls revival (via Rolling Stone), so it remains unclear if Max could still pop up in the future. Years down the line, he may have since married and had children of his own. He is a highly educated person, and he could have since become a college professor. This future would only make sense to be explored if Max returns to Stars Hollow or has a connection to the main characters again.

Why It's Good Max Medina Wasn't In Gilmore Girls: A Year In The Life

It Would Not Have Fit The Narrative Structure

Despite their initial chaotic ending, Lorelai and Max did eventually have a final conversation during the original run of Gilmore Girls. Much of the show explores the impacts of generational trauma and patterns. Both Jason and Christopher fit into these patterns, as Christopher's absence has had a long-term impact on Rory, and Jason represents the life of wealth and high society that Lorelai once left behind. Max Medina simply got caught in the crossfire of Lorelai's chaotic life, and ultimately did not need to play a bigger part.

The addition of Max would have made the show's revival feel over-packed with guest star appearances, and would have defeated the purpose of examining the people that haunt the main characters. On the other hand, the appearance of Rory's first ex-boyfriend, Dean Forrester (Jared Padalecki) added an important layer to the show. The former couple parted ways when Rory fell for Jess Mariano (Milo Ventimiglia), and reconciled when Rory was studying at Yale and Dean was married to Lindsay Shaw (Arielle Kebbel).

The pair's affair gets exposed to the entire town, and is met with strong criticism from Lorelai, who is outspoken against infidelity. In the years that follow, Rory has a relationship with Logan Huntzberger (Matt Czuchry), graduates from Yale, and moves on. When she struggles later in her career and returns home for inspiration, her run-in with Dean reveals that he has since remarried and has children of his own. Their conversation shows how much they have grown and matured as adults, and a similar scene with Lorelai and Max in A Year In The Life would not have packed the same punch.

Sources: Entertainment Weekly, Rolling Stone