In keeping with the latest trend of expanding classic movies into whole television series, FOX have set their sights on the quintessential buddy cop film Lethal Weapon as next in line to get the small screen treatment.
As you may well remember, the original film saw senior police sergeant Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) team up with the defiant, depressed narcotics officer Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson), as the two are assigned the treacherous task of bringing down a gang of violent drug smugglers. The film went on to spawn three commercially successful sequels with the last outing in 1998. It also provided us with one of the most quotable lines in all of cinema, courtesy of Mr. Glover – (all together now) “I’m too old for this shit”.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the television series follows virtually the same premise, only now Riggs is a former Navy SEAL, and will be written by Matt Millar, creator of the short-lived crime series Forever.
The fad of adapting blockbusters into episodic series has so far produced mixed results. Shows such as MTV’s Scream series and FOX’s Minority Report, both failed to make much of a favourable impact, whereas shows such as Fargo and Bates Motel managed to brilliantly capture the tone of their source material.
Whether or not the new adventures of Riggs and Murtaugh will be a hit or miss remains to be seen; it is still in its nascent stages, with no actors attached or premiere date confirmed. I would say that the buddy cop genre does lend itself quite well to the series format, but it’s all dependent on the chemistry of the two lead actors. Here’s hoping the replacements give the relationship the same volatile energy as Glover and Gibson.
#Peace.Love.LethalWeapon
