Ever since its debut in 1982,Knight Riderhas had a tough time finding a new audience despite a number of attempts. There was a pair of made-for-TV movies in the 90s that were based on the series starringDavid Hasselhoff, followed by attempts at new series in 1997’s spin-offTeam Knight Riderand 2008’s modern reboot. However, it looks like yet another a new series is in the works withJustin Linattached as producer and writer.
BCreports that the newKnight Riderseries will be a digital one. The partnership of Lin, NBC Universal, YOMYOMF, and Machinima will once again attempt to bring the iconic 80s series into the 21st century using not only a modern method of distribution (ie YouTube) but updating the story as well. There are no details as to what that story might entail at the moment, but you can guess it’ll involve a highly skilled driver and a souped-up, tricked-out, high-tech ride. Look for the digitalKnight Rider seriesto debut sometime in 2017. In the meantime, Lin will be attending to his directorial duties on another car-centric project:Hot Wheels.
Here’s what Machinima CEOChad Gutsteinhad to say when announcing the project:
Knight Rider is an iconic franchise whose concepts of AI and autonomous vehicles were science fiction in the 1980s and are now science fact. Justin is one of the leading storytellers of his generation and we couldn’t be more excited to work with him on re-invigorating Knight Rider for a new generation of fans.
Similar productions from Machinima’s past includeBattlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome, Mortal Kombat: LegacyandMortal Kombat: Legacy 2,Street Fighter: Assassin’s FistandStreet Fighter: Resurrection, andHalo 4: Forward Unto Dawn, which have combined for more than 300 million views. Pretty impressive, but do today’s audiences want a modern reboot of this nostalgia-fueled property? Doyou? Let us know in the comments below!
