Justin Lin to produce 'Knight Rider' digital reboot
LOS ANGELES -- NBC's '80s series Knight Rider is getting a digital reboot.
Machinima, the digital studio focused on fandom and gamer culture, announced Tuesday that it has partnered with Justin Lin's online brand YOMYOMF and NBCUniversal Brand Development to produce a new digital series.
The reboot is "in active development for a potential 2017 launch date," according to the news release.
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The original series, which ran four seasons from 1982-1986, followed a smart car named KITT and driver Michael Knight (played by David Hasselhoff).
NBC tried to make a reboot of the show in 2008 but it only lasted a season.
Lin, known for Star Trek Beyond and several Fast & Furious films, created his digital media company and blog YOMYOMF(YouOffendMeYouOffendMyFamily) to support Asian American and other unique voices and projects.
Since it's inception, the company has garnered 72 million views across digital platforms. Most recently, YOMYOMF recently partnered with Comcast/NBCUniversal to produce the Interpretations Film Initiative to support aspiring filmmakers.
Machinima has produced many long form live action series based on TV shows and video game franchises, including: Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome, Mortal Kombat: Legacy and Mortal Kombat: Legacy 2, Street Fighter: Assassin’s Fist and Street Fighter: Resurrection, and Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn. Combined, those series have amassed more than 300 million views on Machinima.
“Knight Rider is an iconic franchise whose concepts of AI and autonomous vehicles were science fiction in the 1980s and are now science fact,” Machinima CEO Chad Gutstein said in a statement. “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.”
Topics NBC
Saba was a Los Angeles-based reporter who covers all things digital entertainment, including YouTube, streaming services and digital influencers. Prior to that, she spent two years at the Los Angeles Times covering entertainment for the Calendar and Company Town sections. Saba grew up in Santa Monica and graduated from Boston University with a B.S. in journalism and B.A. in political science. When not reporting, she is usually binge watching shows online or looking for new coffee shops to frequent.
