Guardians of the Galaxy's Star-Lord isn't the only one who still has Knight Rider on the mind. The David Hasselhoff-led TV series remains a fan favorite more than 30 year after its conclusion, and nearly a decade after NBC's Knight Rider TV revival came and went with little fanfare, there are have been renewed attempts to revitalize the property. Last year, it was reported that Star Trek Beyond director Justin Lin was working on a Knight Rider digital series for Machinima, but Hasselhoff has also mentioned that ideas for a Knight Rider movie has been tossed around. Now there's word that The Weinstein Company is actively pursuing getting its own Knight Rider movie up and running, only this one would be a comedy, and the studio is already eyeing Kevin Hart as one of the leads.
No meetings or official negotiations have taken place yet, The Weinstein Company evidently wants Kevin Hart to succeed William Daniels as the voice of KITT, the artificially intelligent car that Michael Knight rides around in. As for the man who drives KITT and will follow in David Hasselhoff's footsteps, Screen Rant also reported that WWE superstar and The Wall actor John Cena is being sought for that job. Whether or not The Weinstein Company is able to secure Hart and Cena as its leads, the studio is interesting in making its Knight Rider movie a comedy tonally similar to Phil Lord and Chris Miller's Jump Street movies.
David Hasselhoff recently spoke about how his vision for a Knight Rider movie to be a dark, Logan-style continuation of the TV series that has his Michael Knight coming back "pissed," but if this new information is legitimate, then The Weinstein Company would not only rather go the reboot route, but also give the masses something funnier, albeit just as action-packed. By taking this creative direction, the Knight Rider movie is more likely to attract the attention of younger viewers who weren't around when the TV series was popular. And hiring Kevin Hart and John Cena would definitely be a hilarious dynamic, with Hart's KITT wisecracking as Cena's Knight is diving into action and providing a few laughs in his own way.
On the other hand, while 21 Jump Street and its sequel were successful with poking fun at the 21 Jump Street TV show, other TV-to-movie adaptations haven't had as good of luck with this approach. Just look at this year's Baywatch and CHiPs. Both movies also served as parodies of their respective TV predecessors, and they were both met with mostly negative reception. That's not to say that this kind of Knight Rider movie couldn't effectively combine action and humor, but it would face an uphill battle winning over longtime fans and causal moviegoers.
For right now, no director or writer is attached to this Knight Rider movie. Keep checking back with CinemaBlend for more news on how this project is developing.
