Networks are only continuing to pluck intellectual properities from yesteryear and spin them into budding new TV series, with Rush Hour, Limitless, Uncle Buck and the now-cancelled Minority Report each displaying the potential pros and cons left facing producers as they attempt to shepherd an existing property from one medium to the next.
Next in line to attempt such a feat is CBS, who today ordered a pilot of Antoine Fuqua’s Training Day. Pitched as a quasi-sequel, the TV show will pick up a full 15 years after the events of the seminal, award-winning 2001 movie, “centering around an idealistic young African-American police officer who is appointed to an elite squad of the LAPD, where he is partnered with a seasoned, morally ambiguous Caucasian detective.”
Originally portrayed by Ethan Hawke and Denzel Washington in Fuqua’s film, the fact that the director is attached to take the reins and even executive produce CBS’ high-profile pilot lends us an inkling of hope that Fuqua and writer Will Beall (Castle, Gangster Squad) can wrangle the narcotics thriller into the serialized TV format. Jerry Bruckheimer and Jonathan Littman are on board to produce, while KristieAnne Reed will executive produce.
With a pilot order secured, the next stop for Fuqua’s reimagining is nailing down his two leads ahead of Training Day‘s premiere in the fall. Right now, however, it’s difficult to fathom another pair anchoring a narcotics drama quite like Washington and Hawke, who are both set to reunite with their director for Sony and MGM’s long-gestating remake of The Magnificent Seven.