Owen Wilson Is NOT 'The Greatest American Hero'
Filed under: Action, Comedy, Casting, RumorMonger, Comic/Superhero/Geek
For me, The Greatest American Hero was maybe one of the best things about TV in the '80s. But, Hollywood can never leave well enough alone and last February the news first hit that a feature film version was in the works. Rumor had it that Owen Wilson was at the top of the list to don the man perm and 'red jammies,' but it was not to be. Moviehole has now confirmed that Wilson will not star in the update, but the film is still moving full steam ahead. According to sources, "They're casting it for now - they're open to an unknown" (which is switch from the original notice's call for 'big names').Hero first premiered on ABC in 1981 and the story focused on a young teacher (William Katt) who has been given superhuman abilities thanks to an alien suit. Along with an FBI agent named Bill Maxwell (Robert Culp), the two kept busy for the next three seasons saving the world. According to Moviehole, the feature film will be making a departure from the original series, but it will still be a comedy at heart. The villains will still be your typical superhero baddies, but there will also be some other adversaries in the form of teachers at the school.
Stephen Herek is set to direct (Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure) the script from Chris Matheson and Ryan Rowe (Charlie's Angels). There is no definite timeline so far, but The Greatest American Hero should arrive in theaters sometime in 2009.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-16-2008 @ 1:42AM
EJ is an Idjit said...
every single thing you wrote here is WRONG
you are too stupid to live
Reply
4-16-2008 @ 9:05AM
Alex said...
I still think Simon Pegg would be perfect for this, except that I can't see them moving the story to England and I wouldn't want to see him do an American accent.
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4-16-2008 @ 1:38PM
Matt said...
I agree, Simon Peg would be great. Looking at the photo though, I could actually see this as Will Ferrell comedy.
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4-16-2008 @ 2:18PM
The Deej said...
Typical superhero baddies? The show never had any of those. I will also add that it was 2 1/2 seasons, as it was a mid-season show to start.
while I expect some liberties they better not fuck it up
Reply
4-17-2008 @ 12:13AM
melmac said...
Guys, I've said this before and I'll say this again: where this casting rumor came from is not, not NOT an official source about the project. This is the same hearsay that we've gotten for "The A-Team," which BTW is the only SJC endeavor that I know of that's proceeding as planned.
An official source is from SJC productions, not "Was speaking to a casting director friend today... According to my friend-who-should-know." I sent an E-mail to Cannell Productions and they said that they're doing something in house, but it's a WIP and nothing else.
Plus, why spoil the new story with comments such as "Pam's son" and an evil teacher with names. Right now, I read this a lot as someone using "Sky High" ideas and theming it with "GAH." I mean, evil teacher when they had at worst mafia men and ninjas? Also, giving Ralph a Fantastic Four power when DC comics sued SJC in the '80s for thinking Ralph was Superman? (I know, "Four" is Marvel, but same cause and reason).
Again, I feel a lot of this is currently because of the fanfilm production called "TGAH 2008," and people confusing it as a legit movie being produced. Personally, I truly believe that fanfilm series now defunct as they've said nothing to try and attract fans and this is a way to draw attention to it. Until SJC's company says anything or it comes from an official cited source, not "Talking to a friend," don't believe this story.
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6-16-2008 @ 5:53PM
TGAH HQ said...
It is official! The Greatest American Hero Web Series is coming out on July 4th!
http://www.tgah.com
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6-30-2008 @ 4:33PM
melmac said...
As long as people remember that this Web series is a fan created series and not official, it's up the the viewers now.
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