In Hollywood, there seems to be an ongoing race to adapt as many movies into TV series as possible, in order to capitalize on a pre-existing brand. And to get Lethal Weapon, Fox had to make a pricey commitment.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Fox won a bidding war for the Lethal Weapon television rights by giving the project “a hefty put-pilot commitment.” That means if Fox doesn’t make a Lethal Weapon pilot then it would have pay a pretty huge fine to the producers.
The first Lethal Weapon movie came out in 1987, with Mel Gibson as Martin Riggs and Danny Glover as Roger Murtaugh, a pair of mismatched buddy cops who kept finding themselves in increasingly dangerous situations. Director Richard Donner helmed all four Lethal Weapon movies, which deftly blended comedy and action.
Related: Mel Gibson Rules Out Lethal Weapon 5
Naturally, Riggs and Murtaugh will be recast for the TV series incarnation of Lethal Weapon, although they will retain some of their cinematic counterparts’ signature traits including Riggs’ nearly suicidal grief and Murtaugh’s stress problems.
Matt Miller (Chuck) will adapt Lethal Weapon for television and executive produce the project alongside Dan Lin and Jennifer Gwartz. Lin and Miller previously worked together on ABC’s Forever, which was canceled after a single season.
Despite its well known brand, the Lethal Weapon TV series still faces a competitive market for next season that includes potential adaptations of The A-Team and Behind Enemy Lines on Fox, Training Day at CBS, with The Notebook and Friday the 13th at The CW.
Lethal Weapon fans, do you think that the tone of the movie can be sustained as a weekly TV series? Let us know in the comment section below!
