Though NBC is not commenting on the show's future, it seems that Knight Rider has run out of gas.  After a less than stellar showing this fall and rumors of a revamp, the network has decided to cut the series' original order by four episodes, scheduling its final hour to air on February 25, according to Zap2it.com.

Last month, it was announced that NBC was reformatting the show in an effort to more closely resemble the storyline of its predecessor.  Yancey Arias, Bruce Davison, and Sydney Tamiia Poitier's characters are being removed from the series starting with a two part episode scheduled to air in January 2009.  Moving forward, the show will continue with a more character driven focus on Michael and KITT.  On December 3, however, it was announced that network was reducing its season order to 17 episodes.  The five remaining scripts will be utilized if the show is renewed for a second season.

Meanwhile, showrunner Gary Scott Thompson is making it clear to fans that the network has not canceled Knight Rider just yet.

"We're doing a reboot and, a lot of folks don't know this, but NBC not only cut costs by cutting episodes, which they did on a bunch of shows, they also just laid off 760 people yesterday in their production offices and their other offices," Thompson told fan site Knight Rider Online. "So this is a cost-cutting measure. It is not a cancellation measure."

But many analysts would beg to differ since NBC has not cut the production order of any of its other shows, including Heroes.

Due to the failure of Knight Rider and expected production costs associated with the show, NBC has decided to pass on an opportunity to tie up with Top Gear USA.  Meanwhile, BBC's shopping the U.S. rendition of the hit show to interested cable outlets.


-Kris De Leon, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: Zap2it.com, syfyportal.com
(Image courtesy of Bravo)