The last attempt to reboot the Baywatch franchise didn't go particularly well. The TV-centric brand tried to make the leap to the big screen in 2017, going the R-rated comedy route with Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron playing the leads, but the move was a disappointment. The movie was bashed by critics, and audiences didn't exactly lift it up; it cost $60 million to make, and while star power helped the feature overseas, it managed to make only $58.1 million domestically. It was a rough moment for the IP... but its name recognition has remained intact, which is why a reboot television series is now in the works.
Per Deadline, Fox has made a deal with Baywatch rights holders Fremantle to make a new small screen reboot of the memorable show. It's now one of two lifeguard-centric projects that the network has in the works, as they are also preparing the new series Rescue: HI-Surf. Lara Olsen, whose television credits including Reign, the 90210 reboot, and Private Practice, has been hired to be the showrunner.
Baywatch began life on the small screen as a NBC show that began airing its first season in the fall of 1989, but it was cancelled after its first 21 episodes. The producers and star David Hasselhoff saw its potential and fought for it to find a new home, and it ended up getting a second life in first-run syndication. The show ended up running until the spring of 2001 (the last two seasons rebranded as Baywatch: Hawaii) and produced 241 episodes. It put stars like Carmen Electra, Yasmine Bleeth and Nicole Eggert, and Pamela Anderson in the spotlight, and became particularly well known for its slow motion shots of the main characters running on the beach in bright red swimsuits.
In addition to the movie, the Baywatch franchise also includes the spinoff series Baywatch Nights, which lasted for two seasons between 1995 and 1997.
Original Baywatch creators Michael Berk, Greg Bonann and Doug Schwartz are on-board as producers along with Lara Olsen, and the new show is said to be "action-packed" and split focus between the work of the lifeguards at the center of the show and their "complicated, messy personal lives." The trade report doesn't mention when the rebooted show may air, though it is noted that Rescue: HI-Surf is on track for a launch this fall, and Baywatch was at least at one point considered as a summer series for Fox. It's too early at this point to know who will star in the series, but it's a safe bet based on franchise history that the cast will be filled with attractive men and women who look good wearing skin-tight nylon. Stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for more updates about the show, and take a look at what's coming to the small screen in the coming weeks and months with our 2024 TV Premiere Schedule.
