Classic TV Reboots

By ETCanada.com Staff. 13 Nov 2019 3:41 PM

It’s a tricky business rebooting a TV classic. Change too much and you risk losing the audience who liked the original. Change too little, and viewers may wonder what was the point?

Still, rebooting old hits remains a common network practice. If it worked once before, why not again? And truth be told, sometimes a reboot has worked very well — check out the ongoing success of “Hawaii Five-0” and new reboots such as “MacGyver” this is a trend that won’t be going away any time soon.

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Animated Remake Of 'Good Times' Set For Netflix

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CBS

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‘Press Your Luck', ‘Card Sharks’ To Get Revamped

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Photo: Warner Brothers

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Nickelodeon

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Warner Bros. Television

'Greatest American Hero' Reboot Confirmed

Original ‘Party Of Five’ Creators Bring Reboot To Life With Twist

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'Darkwing Duck'
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"Darkwing Duck" is being revived for Disney+ by Seth Rogen.

Evan Goldberg, James Weaver and Alex McAtee will also help oversee the reboot of the early '90s show.
'Tiny Toons' Reboot Coming To HBO Max
Photo: HBO Max/Twitter
Nearly three decades later, the Tiny Toons gang is coming back.

HBO Max and Cartoon Network are set to revive the classic animated series "Tiny Toons" with a two-season order.

Steven Spielberg and Amblin Television will once again be producing the show, which will follow the animated characters' hijinks at the esteemed higher education institution Acme Looniversity.
Animated Remake Of 'Good Times' Set For Netflix
Youtube
An animated reimagining of the hit ’70s series “Good Times” is on its way to a screen near you.

Original series creator Norman Lear will join forces with NBA star Steph Curry and his Unanimous Media, Seth MacFarlane and his Fuzzy Door, and Sony Pictures TV to create the new reboot, which has been ordered by Netflix.

“We are so excited about this project! Unanimous is all about authentic partnerships and this team felt genuine from the beginning,” said Curry and Peyton speaking to Deadline.

“Good Times strives to remind us that with the love of our family we can overcome any obstacle," they added. "We think, now more than ever, the world needs to see a show with hope and positivity.”
'Hogan's Heroes' Returns
CBS
A classic comedy series is making its comeback. "Hogan's Heroes" is the latest show to get the reboot treatment. In news that may delight the skeptical, original series co-creator Al Ruddy, Village Roadshow Entertainment Group and Rough Pictures are behind the revived series. The new show will be set in present-day and focuses on the descendants of the original heroes.
'Making The Band'
Photo: Michael Buckner/Variety/Shutterstock
The bands are getting back together thanks to Diddy. The hip-hop mogul is teaming up with MTV for a revival of "Making the Band". On July 15, Diddy announced that a global talent search will take place online to find the next great artists.
'Blind Date'
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The Bravo network will be reviving "Blind Date", the syndicated reality series in which cameras followed two strangers who were set up on a blind date. Originally running from 1999 until 2006, Variety reports this new version will be updated “with social media trends and diverse couples of all ethnicities, ages and sexual orientations.” No word on whether Roger Lodge (pictured), who hosted all 10 seasons of the original, will be returning for this new version.
‘Press Your Luck', ‘Card Sharks’ To Get Revamped
Photo by: Fred Sabine/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images
Two classic game shows are getting a reboot as ABC plans to bring back “Press Your Luck” and “Card Sharks”.

The fan-favourite ‘80s series are both already in pre-production with hour-long episodes slated to air this spring.

The network is fond of the game-show reboots with “Family Feud”, “Match Game” and “The $100,000 Pyramid” all currently airing.
'Queer As Folk'
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Former "Doctor Who" executive producer and "Queer as Folk" creator Russell T. Davis is working on a revival of the program for Bravo, according to Variety.
Female-Led ‘Kung Fu’
Photo: Warner Brothers
The female-led reboot of “Kung Fu” has been picked up for a pilot at Fox. The hour-long drama is not about martial arts but focuses on a kung fu studio that’s secretly a centre devoted to helping down-and-out Chinese Americans. The drama will feature a Chinese-American woman as the lead.
'Bewitched' To Cast A New Spell
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Following the big-screen 2005 flop starring Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell, "Bewitched" will be rebooted again, but with a big twist: the upcoming reboot from "black-ish" creator Kenya Barris will feature an African-American actress in the lead role as the spell-casting homemaker played in the original by Elizabeth Montgomery. “Samantha, a black hardworking, single mom, who happens to be a witch, marries Darren, a white mortal who happens to be a bit of a slacker," reads the synopsis. "They struggle to navigate their differences as she discovers that even when a black girl is literally magic, she’s still not as powerful as a decently tall white man with a full head of hair in America.”
‘Designing Women’ Revival In The Works

"Designing Women" is the latest 1990s-era sitcom to receive the reboot treatment, with series creator Linda Bloodworth-Thomason reviving the series about a group of women working in an interior design firm. One of the show's stars has already indicated she'd be onboard; earlier this year, original Annie Potts says she’d love to be part of a revival of the female-led CBS sitcom in the Time’s Up era. “I don’t know when I’d find the time for it, but I think that they could use a show like ‘Designing Women’ - feisty smart women that didn’t take any B.S. from anybody,” she tells EW.
'Rugrats' Revived
Nickelodeon
A new generation of TV-watching kids will be enjoying "Rugrats" when the iconic Nickelodeon cartoon returns with a 26-episode new season, along with another feature film. Production is reportedly already underway, with casting, a premiere date and more details to be announced in the months to come.
'Temptation Island'
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Part of the early-2000s reality show boom that brought us such enduring hits as "Survivor" and "Big Brother" "Temptation Island" is poised to make a comeback. While there's no official announcement, Deadline is reporting that the USA Network is nearing a deal to reboot the show, which sets couples in a tropical paradise, where they live separately alongside sexy singles of the opposite sex in order to test the strength of their relationship. Mark L. Walberg ("Antiques Roadshow") hosted the original, which ran for three seasons on Fox.
'Roswell' Reboot Heading To The CW
Warner Bros. Television
The teenage alien drama "Roswell" will be making a comeback courtesy of a new reboot with a timely immigration twist, reflecting the realities of the town's location in a state bordering Mexico. "After reluctantly returning to her tourist-trap hometown of Roswell, NM, the daughter of undocumented immigrants discovers a shocking truth about her teenage crush who is now a police officer: He’s an alien who has kept his unearthly abilities hidden his entire life," reads the synopsis of the upcoming reboot. "She protects his secret as the two reconnect and begin to investigate his origins, but when a violent attack and long-standing government cover-up point to a greater alien presence on Earth, the politics of fear and hatred threaten to expose him and destroy their deepening romance." If all goes well, look for "Roswell" to make a crash landing on The CW's schedule during the 2018-19 season.
'Greatest American Hero' Reboot Confirmed
Stephen J. Cannell Productions/Entertainment Pictures. (©) Copyright 1981 by Crtsy of Stephen J. Cannell Prod
The long-rumoured reboot of beloved 1980s TV series "The Greatest American Hero" is happening, with ABC confirming it's ordered a pilot. This new version will have a twist, though: the titular hero — a curly-haired white guy played by William Katt in the original — has been recast an Indian-American woman named Meera.
Original ‘Party Of Five’ Creators Bring Reboot To Life With Twist
Keystone Press
It’s been nearly two decades since the original “Party of Five” wrapped, but the creators, Chris Keyser and Amy Lippman, are bringing it back.

The new “Party of Five” will have a slight twist from the first, the original saw the Salinger family brought closer together after their parents died in a car crash.

This time, the Buendias family struggle to stay close after their parents are suddenly deported back to Mexico.

To get viewers ready for the upcoming series, Freeform and Canada's ABC Spark will air rerun episodes of its six-season run.
"The New Monkees"

This 1987 reboot wasn't such a bad idea on paper. It updated the famed sixties Prefab Four but with a modern flair (well, a 1980s flair - including a blond-haired Flock of Seagulls-type guy). This time around, the producers actually hired actors who had significant musical backgrounds. The pilot episode featured real footage of the nation-wide search for "The New Monkees", including their auditions (much like the original). From that point, however, it was pretty much fiction as the boys settled into a mansion that featured a diner. That's handy. Their weekly misadventures included a couple of songs per episode. Unfortunately, ratings proved low. Sales of their album (which featured a cover of Tom Cochrane's The Boy Inside The Man) proved worse. "The New Monkees" took the last train to Nowheresville after 13 episodes.
'Kojak'

Who loves ya, baby? People loved the 1973-78 series with Telly Savalas, so any reboot was going to have problems. This 2005 version - made for the USA Network - wasn't terrible. It even had Ving Rhames ("Pulp Fiction") as tough, lollipop-sucking detective Theo Kojak. But gone was all the charm and grit of the original series, which had a great New York backdrop. Beyond the bald head and lollipops, the new "Kojak" was just another cop show.
'Knight Rider'

Don't mess with success is the message in this reboot. The 2008-09 series had the super intellegent car and its hunky driver Michael Knight (Justin Bruening replacing David Hasselhoff). It even had a new car voice by Val Kilmer. But its plot was a little less car-and-driver and a little more crime-fighting ensemble. Instead of Michael and KITT on the road, they constantly had to deal a KITT team who sometimes disagreed with Michael's approach. That didn't last long though. After 17 episodes, the premise was refocused on Michael and KITT and several cast members were excised. It did not work. The series drove off into the sunset after one season.
'Nikita'

Both "La Femme Nikita" (1997-2001) and "Nikita" (which premiered in 2010) were based on the same movie - Luc Besson's 1990 actioner. But while "La Femme Nikita" chose to make its female killer/hero more sympathetic, the new version sticks more with the original movie premise. It's darker, and its hero (Maggie Q) is far more complex in her revenge against the folks who programmed her. Maybe it reflects the modern times more - like Battlestar Galactica's reboot. Or maybe they just needed to change it to justify such a quick remake. Either way, it seems to have worked.
'Dragnet'

Jack Webb's influential cop drama has had a couple of reboots. The syndicated 1989 "New Dragnet" didn't exactly set the world on fire and is mostly forgotten. However, Dick Wolf (the mind behind the "Law & Order" franchises) took another stab at the show in 2003. Ed O'Neill ("Modern Family") played the Just-The-Facts-Ma'am cop Joe Friday. But when ratings were mediocre in its first season, the premise was changed to a more ensemble approach. Friday was promoted and all connection to the original was pretty much dumped. It lasted but 3 more episodes.
'The Fugitive'

Forget the classic 1963-67 series. This was produced by the makers of the 1993 Harrison Ford film version, so it had a lot of energy and action. The promo ad actually says 'This time, he's running faster than ever...' as if foot speed is key to entertainment. It wasn't. This 2000-01 drama starred Tim Daly as the wrongly-convicted doctor searching for that One-Armed Man who killed his wife. The pilot was great; and the rest of the series first-rate. Still, few watched. Maybe viewers had tired of all the guy-on-the-run shows that had come and gone since the original "The Fugitive". "Incredible Hulk". "Kung Fu". "The Littlest Hobo". The list is endless.
'Battlestar Galactica'

One of the best reboots ever. This 2003-09 space opera took the premise of that silly 1970s sci-fi series (Humans fleeing through space in search of a new home) and turned it into a dark, political, and sometimes shocking drama. Backstabbing and paranoia reigned. As did killer robots hiding as humans among us. Though many of the characters had the same name as the previous series, that was all they had in common. "Battlestar Galactica" found a new audience among adults who didn't necessarily like sci-fi, but they loved this show.
'Beauty and The Beast'

The lead guy in this current CW/Showcase series isn't much of a beast. He's a supersoldier — part of an experiment gone 'awry' many years before. So whenever he gets enraged, he goes all beastly with super strength and abilities. Kinda like "The Incredible Hulk". Forget the romantic 1987-90 version with the woman and the big ol' human kitty-cat, the new "Beauty and the Beast" is more an espionage, detective tale than a gooey romance.

Classic TV Reboots

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