Fall Preview 2016: Will ‘Lethal Weapon’ pack the heat of the original?
Remakes are a tricky proposition, and this is something that Fox should know better than anyone after their recent take on “Minority Report” failed to get any traction. They were probably at least aware of CBS’ swing-and-a-miss with “Rush Hour.”
So what makes “Lethal Weapon” different this coming fall? That’s what we are going to try to figure out in this article, since we do think there is at least a pretty solid chance that these adventures of Riggs and Murtaugh are going to end up drawing some pretty good ratings and score a season 2 renewal to boot.
Premiere Date and Timeslot Competition – Wednesday, September 21 at 8:00 p.m. Eastern time. This show is going to be paired with “Empire,” and while we don’t think it is a perfect fit per se, the name behind the franchise should be enough to draw it a decent audience right out of the gate. What else is it up against? Think “Blindspot,” “Arrow,” “Survivor,” and comedies on ABC. “Blindspot” is probably its most-dangerous competitor in terms of similar audience.
Logline – “Texas cop and former Navy SEAL Martin Riggs suffers the loss of his wife and baby and he moves to Los Angeles to start anew. There, he gets partnered with LAPD detective Roger Murtaugh who, having recently suffered a “minor” heart attack, must avoid any stress in his life. Based on the movie franchise.”
Cast – Clayne Crawford, Damon Wayans Sr., Keesha Sharp, Jordana Brewster, Kevin Rahm, Chandler Kinney, and Johnathan Fernandez.
Trailer – It does have a lot going for it, given that it is action-packed, dramatic, and funny at times either. It feels true to the spirit of the films, but also has a little bit of its own energy to it as well. It’s an old-school buddy-cop show at a time when there aren’t many great ones on the air. The only problem we have is that we imagine this trailer is so long that it gives away most of the pilot.
Overall Take – Out of many recent remakes this feels like one of the strongest on paper. We love the cast (Rahm was great on “Mad Men,” and Brewster “Dallas”), and we’ve been missing a good show like this on Fox. Ultimately, the challenge here will be sustaining the drama over a longer period of time.