The Greatest American Hero Reboot Passed Over At ABC
Pilot season has made another surprising pass. According to The Hollywood Reporter, ABC has decided not to pick up their Greatest American Hero reboot, which was set to star New Girl's Hannah Simone.
Simone was one of the most in-demand stars for pilot season, and she eventually landed on the reboot, which came from Fresh Off the Boat's Nahnatcha Khan. The show would have followed Simone as Meera, a 30-year-old Cleveland resident who has spent her life eschewing ambition in favor of tequila and karaoke, much to the chagrin of her traditional Indian-American family. However, when she is entrusted with a super suit to protect the planet, Meera's life changes forever — and the world finds that it has never been in more unreliable hands.
George Wendt, Gia Sandhu, Zenobia Shroff, Shoniqua Shandai, Dennis Andres, Humphrey Ker, and Ellie Reed also starred in the series, which was written and executive produced by Rachna Fruchbom (Parks and Recreation). Also executive producing was Khan, Mandy Summers (Jalen Vs. Everybody), and Tawnia McKiernan (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles). Christine Gernon (One Foot in the Grave) directed the pilot for the series, which would have rebooted the William Katt-starring ABC series that aired from 1981 to 1983.
According to THR, the pilot came in feeling "off-brand" for ABC, which is sticking more with family comedies (like the Taran Killam-starring Single Parents) this season. "Hashtag blessed," Simone wrote on Twitter. "I had seven years being part of my favourite show on tv. I had the chance to shoot a pilot about a flawed weird superhero. It's hard to sum up into words how lucky I feel." This is the second big surprise of pilot season, following NBC passing on their Gabrielle Union and Jessica Alba-starring Bad Boys spin-off L.A.'s Finest.
Comedy series returning to ABC this fall include Khan's Fresh Off the Boat, Black-ish, American Housewife, Splitting Up Together, Speechless, The Goldbergs, Modern Family, and Roseanne. On the drama side, the network renewed For the People, Station 19, How To Get Away With Murder, Grey's Anatomy, and The Good Doctor. Their new series include the Michael Cudlitz comedy The Kids Are Alright; the Demian Bichir starring Grand Hotel; Lauren Cohan's Whiskey Cavalier; Marcia Clarke's The Fix; the James Roday drama A Million Little Things; the Nathan Fillion cop show The Rookie; the Rachel Bilson cop show Take Two; and The Goldbergs spin-off Schooled. (via THR)