Seeing that old shows are getting more appealing, NBC has given the remake of Knight Rider a series order.  The show has been given a test drive as a two-hour made-for-television movie in February, which resulted to a Sunday night primetime victory for the network.  As expected, high ratings have made everyone at the network rooting for more K.I.T.T. and company.

Serving as showrunner and executive producer for the new Knight Rider series is Gary Scott Thompson, who most recently led NBC's Las Vegas.  Producer Universal Media Studios has also made a two-year overall deal with the scribe, who is also credited for Fast and the Furious. Thompson will work alongside exec producers Doug Liman and Dave Bartis, as well as scribe-producer Dave Andron, who wrote the pilot.

According to Universal Media Studios president Katherine Pope, signing Thompson became a top priority for the network as soon as it became clear that Knight Rider was going to be a television series.

"The network and studio all came to this idea separately.  There was a list of one," Pope told Daily Variety.

"Action and effects are going to be a real priority for us on this show," added Pope, who is confident that Thompson would help improve the quality of special effects on Knight Rider.

The deal for Knight Rider comes as Thompson is still mourning the abrupt cancellation of Las Vegas, which left fans disappointed as the show ended without proper resolution.  Aside from Thompson, Las Vegas veteran Matt Pyken is also reported to be joining the new Knight series as executive producer.

The new Knight Rider retains the team of a man and a talking car, which is now voiced by Val Kilmer, from the original 1980s cult classic, but throws in contemporary touches and new characters.

Although it hasn't been confirmed, there have already been speculations that Knight Rider could end up airing on Fridays, just like Las Vegas.



-Kris De Leon, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: Variety
(Image courtesy of NBC)