NBC and Bryan Fuller remaking The Munsters

[The Borgified Corpse]

Somehow, I'm not picturing this on network TV. I get more of an ABC Family or possibly Nickelodeon vibe from it.

I thought Pushing Daisies was embarrassingly bad.

Aw cmon, it was charming and sometimes brilliant. It's biggest problem was it that it lacked anything at stake that was important enough that the audience would be hooked. Middling stakes just don't do it.

Agreed. I enjoyed all I've seen of Pushing Daisies, although I've only seen a little of it. Mostly, I was disappointed that it wasn't quite as sharp as Wonderfalls. It didn't have the same cynical bite. At times, Pushing Daisies was almost too syrupy sweet for my tastes, particularly on the romance front.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

I also gave Mad Men(another critical darling) a try and thought it was a pretentious bore--so take that for what it is worth.

Maybe I should listen to you, since I also find Mad Men a pretentious bore (though I stuck with it till the current season).

 

[Nathan_Heller]

On one hand, The Munsters is a TV classic; do we really need a remake?

We already had one.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113296/

This was a one-shot Halloween TV movie once and it was good. It included cameos of most of the original cast.

 

[PsychoPere]

Fuller thinks Kristen Bell would be "perfect" for Marilyn.

 

[startrekwatcher]

Fuller's description of the events in the pilot sounds stupid.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Fuller thinks Kristen Bell would be "perfect" for Marilyn.

If Marilyn were developed into a real character this time around.

The description of what Eddie does in the pilot episode sounds like something that can't happen on network TV! That's pretty much Futurama style absurdist humor. Maybe Bryan should shoot for cable instead.

 

[PsychoPere]

Fuller thinks Kristen Bell would be "perfect" for Marilyn.

If Marilyn were developed into a real character this time around.

According to that article, that is his plan.

 

[Gojira]

I'm disappointed. I thought someone would have suggested Brad Garrett for Herman Munster by now..

I like that Idea! He'd be a natural.

 

[Jack Bauer]

Fuller thinks Kristen Bell would be "perfect" for Marilyn.

That would be awesome.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

It's looking more likely!

Fuller’s new outline submitted in Septemer was received well (it was the talk of NBC’s pre-Emmy party), and his draft was just delivered on Friday. Word is that NBC, which may pull the trigger on a series order as early as this week, envisions the new Munsters as a potential summer or event series. Like Fuller’s previous series, Pushing Daisies, the project features striking visuals mixed with all the classic Munsters archetypes. Grandpa Sam Dracula is essentially Dracula who assembled Herman because no man was good enought for his daughter Lily, a sexy vamp. Lily’s niece Marilyn the freak is actually normal and Lily and Herman’s only child, Eddie, has his werewolf tendencies surface in puberty, forcing the family to relocate to their famous 1313 Mockingbird Lane address

Here's hoping for Kristen Bell as Marilyn.

For the rest:

Hermann Munster - Brad Garrett
Lily Munster - Teri Hatcher
Grandpa Sam Dracula - Danny DeVito
Eddie Munster - Chandler Riggs from The Walking Dead, if he can do two shows at once...

 

[Vendikarr]

It's looking more likely!

Fuller’s new outline submitted in Septemer was received well (it was the talk of NBC’s pre-Emmy party), and his draft was just delivered on Friday. Word is that NBC, which may pull the trigger on a series order as early as this week, envisions the new Munsters as a potential summer or event series. Like Fuller’s previous series, Pushing Daisies, the project features striking visuals mixed with all the classic Munsters archetypes. Grandpa Sam Dracula is essentially Dracula who assembled Herman because no man was good enought for his daughter Lily, a sexy vamp. Lily’s niece Marilyn the freak is actually normal and Lily and Herman’s only child, Eddie, has his werewolf tendencies surface in puberty, forcing the family to relocate to their famous 1313 Mockingbird Lane address

Here's hoping for Kristen Bell as Marilyn.

For the rest:

Hermann Munster - Brad Garrett
Lily Munster - Teri Hatcher
Grandpa Sam Dracula - Danny DeVito
Eddie Munster - Chandler Riggs from The Walking Dead, if he can do two shows at once...

Danny DiVito as Grandpa is inspired. So of course it will never happen.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

And of course Sam Dracula will be played in flashback by Charlie Day.

But seriously folks, between this show and Hannibal, there has to be a way for Fuller to get Lee Pace back on TV. I can't believe how he's just vanished! He'd be tall enough to play Hermann, hmm...nah, send him to Hannibal.

 

[Kelso]

Fuller's description of the events in the pilot sounds stupid.

Are you kidding me? That sounds hysterical!

Perhaps because I was a Boy Scout.

God, I want to see this.

 

[Lonemagpie]

Fuller's description of the events in the pilot sounds stupid.

Sounds like the Family Guy version, really.

It may even work, but it won't be The Munsters...

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Fuller's description of the events in the pilot sounds stupid.

Are you kidding me? That sounds hysterical!

Perhaps because I was a Boy Scout.

God, I want to see this.

I'm envisioning the same blithely depraved approach that we saw a little bit of, in Pushing Daisies. That could be great! (And I still think that more of it could have saved Pushing Daisies.)

But Munsters purists, and I'm sure they exist, will be livid because Fuller's version is bound to have a very different tone.

 

[Captaindemotion]

It's looking more likely!

Fuller’s new outline submitted in Septemer was received well (it was the talk of NBC’s pre-Emmy party), and his draft was just delivered on Friday. Word is that NBC, which may pull the trigger on a series order as early as this week, envisions the new Munsters as a potential summer or event series. Like Fuller’s previous series, Pushing Daisies, the project features striking visuals mixed with all the classic Munsters archetypes. Grandpa Sam Dracula is essentially Dracula who assembled Herman because no man was good enought for his daughter Lily, a sexy vamp. Lily’s niece Marilyn the freak is actually normal and Lily and Herman’s only child, Eddie, has his werewolf tendencies surface in puberty, forcing the family to relocate to their famous 1313 Mockingbird Lane address

Here's hoping for Kristen Bell as Marilyn.

For the rest:

Hermann Munster - Brad Garrett
Lily Munster - Teri Hatcher
Grandpa Sam Dracula - Danny DeVito
Eddie Munster - Chandler Riggs from The Walking Dead, if he can do two shows at once...

IIRC, around the time of the Addams Family movies, there was talk of a Munsters movie (inevitably) and Danny was supposed to be Grandpa Munster, opposite his Twins co-star Arnie, as Herman.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Maybe Ah-hold can do a guest shot? He's at liberty now, or so I've heard.

 

[23skidoo]

I just heard about this (it's getting some belated coverage in the press). Bryan Fuller I think has the right touch of whimsy to do this justice, plus you never know if a crossover with Dead Like Me might not be a possibility.

The only thing that annoys me is why do we need another reboot? Much is being made of that 100,000-strong petition against the Kardashian TV show being on the air - I say let's start one calling on Hollywood to actually come up with more original ideas for TV shows and movies rather than always feasting on its own history. I mean, redoing the Munsters isn't even a new idea as anyone who still has nightmares of the train wreck that was The Munsters Today can attest (plus one or two made-for-cable TV movies that were seen by about 26 people). I mean, Fuller himself gave us original ideas with Dead Like Me, Wonderfalls and Pushing Daisies. It's disappointing to see him feeding from the remake trough. (And no, just because it's a remake doesn't mean it'll be any more "successful" than those other shows - Munsters Today, remember?)

Hopefully they'll at least cast smart for this. One of my vague memories of Munsters Today is Herman was shorter than Lily, which ain't right. Herman is supposed to be the Frankenstein Monster. He doesn't need to be 7 feet tall but a major part of his character is he's supposed to be a "gentle giant". (Brad Garrett or Patrick Warburton would be my first choices). Kristen Bell for Lily. Some well-known TV actor we haven't seen in years looking for a comeback as Grandpa. Unknowns for the kids (or maybe a Disney/Nickelodeon chick for Marilyn - and this would be a great place to spoof political correctness if they cast a black actress; think about it).

Alex

 

[Captaindemotion]

I Much is being made of that 100,000-strong petition against the Kardashian TV show being on the air - I say let's start one calling on Hollywood to actually come up with more original ideas for TV shows and movies rather than always feasting on its own history.
Alex

Even if there was even the remotest chance of such a petition being paid the slightest bit of attention, let's not forget that 'tv feasting on its own history' has given us some fine viewing. Star Trek The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine. Ron D Moore's BSG and Caprica. The regenerated Doctor Who and spin-offs. Gabriel Byrne's In Treatment, which is a remake of an Israeli show. The US Office, Sandford and Son, All in The Family and other American remakes of British shows, which went on to become classics. And many more. So let's not throw out the baby with the bathwater.

There are and have been many great original shows on tv right now - Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Burn Notice, The Walking Dead (albeit an adaptation of a graphic novel), Treme, Boardwalk Empire, American Horror Story, etc. There are no more remakes or adaptations of other tv shows on air at present than there have ever been.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

From monster list of sf/f shows under development, here are the actual remakes: Alien Nation, The Munsters, Beauty and the Beast (there's another Beauty and the Beast series that isn't an adaptation) and Bewitched. That's 4 out of 60.

There are lots more shows that are adaptations of movies (Source Code, The Adjustment Bureau, Zombieland); graphic novels & comics (Powers, AKA Jessica Jones, Cloak & Dagger); and regular novels (Frankenstein, Jeckyl & Hyde, American Gods).

And of course there's lots of stuff that isn't based on anything in particular that I recognize. Not much is stunningly original, but the charge that Hollywood does nothing but remakes is false.