Knight Rider

[Raiders Army]

So no one watched this last night? I thought it was pretty good and stayed reasonably true to its roots (although a Camaro or Corvette would've been better than a Mustang). I hope it becomes a regular series.

[Flasch186]

what did you think of the professor's daughter? She is a friend of mine so I'm trying to see what others thought of the job she did before passing my initial judgment. Im afraid me knowing her is clouding said judgment....oh her acting, I already know she's hawt.

[Raiders Army]

I was distracted by her hotness, but she was very believable in her role. The story held her back, but I thought she did a great job acting. The guys trying to catch her...notsomuch. The professor himself wasn't great, but passable. IMHO, she was more the center of last night's TV movie than Mike Traceaur.

[Alan T]

I watched it, I had been looking forward to this for months.. Enjoyed it completely and hope that enough other sensible people liked it to give the ratings it deserves. I am sick and tired of good shows like this or Journeyman disappear to bad ratings while horrible shows like Medium continue on... This is easily on the top of my must see list every week.

[Flasch186]

I thought it was a movie of the week.

[Ksyrup]

The story of how Val Kilmer became the voice of KITT is pretty funny. The original guy did voiceover work for GM or another car company, and had a "sponsorship conflict" with doing the voice of a Ford car.

[rjolley]

I thought it was good, though I agree it would've been better if they'd used a Corvette or Camaro for KITT instead of a Mustang. I liked the way they tied in the original Knight Rider storyline. Definitely could watch it every week, though it wouldn't be a "must watch when it comes on" show. More of a DVR show.

[rkmsuf]

Does he still talk into his watch?

I didn't watch it. I refuse to watch a Hoff-less Knight Rider.

[Kodos]

I thought Will Arnett was the voice of KITT? (Didn't watch it, but that's what Entertainment Weekly said.)

[Ksyrup]

VAL KILMER ASSUMES ROLE AS VOICE OF KITT -- AMERICA'S FAVORITE TALKING CAR -- IN NBC'S 'KNIGHT RIDER' MOVIE EVENT ON FEBRUARY 17
Published: February 8, 2008


BURBANK, Calif. - February 8, 2008 - Val Kilmer ("Comanche Moon," "Batman Forever," "The Doors") will assume the role of the voice of KITT -- America's favorite talking car -- in NBC's "Knight Rider" movie of the week which revs up on Sunday, February 17 (9-11 p.m. ET).

Kilmer will play the role of KITT after actor Will Arnett had to withdraw from the role due to a conflicting sponsorship deal.

"We feel really lucky to have Val Kilmer on board for 'Knight Rider.' Val's voice has truly elevated the character of KITT and brought a whole new level of excitement to this project for us. He completely gets the fun that can be had in the relationship between a guy and his car, it's just a perfect fit for the show," expressed executive producer David Bartis.

After his breakthrough performance in the hit feature film "Top Gun," Kilmer starred in several more blockbusters covering a variety of genres, including "Batman Forever," "The Doors" (as Jim Morrison), "Tombstone" and the animated "The Prince of Egypt." Among Kilmer's many other films are "True Romance," "Heat," "The Saint," "Red Planet," "Wonderland," "Willow," "Pollock" and "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang."

"Knight Rider," the iconic 1980s television classic, is kicked into overdrive with an all-new cast and a modern day KITT. The two-hour movie event stars Justin Bruening, Deanna Russo, Sydney Tamiia Poitier and Bruce Davison. In addition, David Hasselhoff -- who starred in the popular lead role as Michael Knight for four seasons during the original series' run -- returns in this sequel as the same character during a special guest appearance. As the original story resumes in this sequel, KITT is absolutely the coolest car ever created: its supercomputer capable of hacking almost any system; its weapons systems efficient; and its body -- thanks to its creator's work and nanotechnology -- is capable of actually shifting shape and color. Plus, its artificial intelligence makes it the ideal crime-fighting partner: logical, precise and possessing infinite knowledge. It is the ultimate car and someone will be willing to do anything to obtain it.

NBC's partnership with Ford Motor Company provides for a unique content opportunity that makes the Ford Mustang one of the stars of the movie. The three cars to be employed in the series include the KITT Hero -- a Ford Mustang Shelby GT 500 KR that is playing the part of the everyday Hero car with 540 horsepower; the KITT Attack -- a super high-speed version of the Ford Mustang Shelby GT 500 KR Hero car that transforms into Attack mode with the help of air-ride technology and specialized body parts -- and a KITT Remote, which is a driverless Ford Mustang Shelby GT 500 KR version of the Hero vehicle.

David Bartis ("Heist," "The O.C.") and Doug Liman ("Mr. and Mrs. Smith," "The Bourne Identity") serve as executive producers. David Andron is supervising producer and writer. Steve Shill ("Dexter," "The Tudors"), also a co-executive producer, directs the two-hour movie from Universal Media Studios and Dutch Oven Productions.

[IMetTrentGreen]

OK, are you guys fucking with me? Is this a joke played on poor old IMTG?

That shit was among the worst garbage I've ever seen. Ford fooled everyone into watching a 2 hour commercial. They could not have spent more than $50,000 on the entire production.

The folks they found to play the lead roles were student film bad. Not NYU or USC student film, high school student film. Horrible. Mystery Science Theater bad.

[IMetTrentGreen]

KITT: Go to the door.
Ashton Kutcher: Why? It's locked.
KITT: That won't be a problem.
AK: You're staring TO PISS ME OFF!

???

[Ksyrup]

OK, are you guys fucking with me? Is this a joke played on poor old IMTG?

That shit was among the worst garbage I've ever seen. Ford fooled everyone into watching a 2 hour commercial. They could not have spent more than $50,000 on the entire production.

The folks they found to play the lead roles were student film bad. Not NYU or USC student film, high school student film. Horrible. Mystery Science Theater bad.

I didn't watch it, but the fact that they had a "sponsorship conflict" with the KITT voice makes it pretty obvious you are right. In that case, they should have had Mike Rowe do the voice.

And apparently Sidney Poitier's kid isn't as particular about the roles she takes as her old man is...

[Flasch186]

OK, are you guys fucking with me? Is this a joke played on poor old IMTG?

That shit was among the worst garbage I've ever seen. Ford fooled everyone into watching a 2 hour commercial. They could not have spent more than $50,000 on the entire production.

The folks they found to play the lead roles were student film bad. Not NYU or USC student film, high school student film. Horrible. Mystery Science Theater bad.

I wasn't really happy with the performances and unfortunately My friend's either.

[Cuckoo]

OK, are you guys fucking with me? Is this a joke played on poor old IMTG?

That shit was among the worst garbage I've ever seen. Ford fooled everyone into watching a 2 hour commercial. They could not have spent more than $50,000 on the entire production.

The folks they found to play the lead roles were student film bad. Not NYU or USC student film, high school student film. Horrible. Mystery Science Theater bad.

Being in complete and total agreement with IMTG, I feel very dirty right now.

I really wanted to like this one. After all, Knight Rider was one of my favorites as a kid. But once you get past the sentimental value, it was truly a horrible show with very little plot, pretty people utterly unconvincing as intelligent heroes and some incredibly poor dialogue - just to name a couple of examples: the contrived "tension" between Michael and KITT before they meet and the worst line of the episode from Sydney Poitier to Michael at the end when she calls him "smart and savvy."

Ugh.

[Rizon]

I missed it. I loved the original Knight Rider so much that the first car I ever bought was a 3rd gen FB (and owned for 14 years up until last year :( )

I didn't know how I'd feel seeing a Mustang as KITT.

[IMetTrentGreen]

Exactly. I'm just so upset they fooled me by taking one of my childhood favorites and doing . . . that to it. It's like re-animating the corpse of Johnny Carson and slapping an Exxon sticker on his forehead.

Is nothing sacred? I feel like sitting Ford and NBC down and having a Bunk to Omar type talk with them. We used to have a code, man.

[ISiddiqui]

Mustang as KITT was kind of ridiculous, but I enjoyed it just the same.

[JonInMiddleGA]

I wouldn't expect 'em to screw around with it much since it was strong enough to lead NBC to a win in the 18-49 demo last night.

Not only did it win the 10p hour but it trounced it's competition on ABC (Brothers & Sisters) and CBS (Dexter), beating them by 50% in total viewers as well as 18-49's. (Dexter looks like a disaster btw).

Also, KR gained audience as the night went along (read as: after Home Makeover went off) and retained 100% of it's 10p-1030p for the final half hour.

I'd be a long way from counting on a regular series being a big breakout hit based on all this but there's nothing in the numbers that would indicate a need to change anything at this point.

http://www.zap2it.com/tv/ratings/zap-ratings021708,0,1401481.story
http://tvbythenumbers.com/2008/02/18/nielsen-ratings-sun-feb-17-cbs-losing-badly-with-younger-audiences/2690#more-2690

[stevew]

I miss Team Knight Rider

[IMetTrentGreen]

JIMG - You know how Adam Sandler movies take in 60m the first week, then 15m the second week?

[Marc Vaughan]

I was expecting this to be edgier and more realistic, bit like the new Battlestar Galactica.

Instead I found it to be extremely contrived and while I never thought I'd say it - the original had better acting and was much better written*.

I also think 'Kit' as a 'common place' car doesn't feel right, the whole idea of him in the old series was that he looked cool and somewhat exotic, the fact people look at the Mustang and go 'wow' amuses me - I like the car (heck even test-drove one before deciding to get the Altima Coupe) but its not the type of thing you go 'wow' over imho.

*When I was around 9 I wrote a very badly written 'sequel' to Lord of the Rings - it consisted of the same story but with the 'son/daughter of' .... I never realised I should have contacted Tolkeins estate to see if they'd want to release it as a television series ;)

[bulletsponge]

JIMG - You know how Adam Sandler movies take in 60m the first week, then 15m the second week?

advertising. you can buy a big opening week, but the quality ( or lack thereof) will determine the following weeks

[cody8200]

My wife and I watched it...not great but not bad. I thought the prof. was good but the daughter...not so much. Sorry Flasch. We'll probably tune in again because there isn't much else on tv these days anyway.

[lordscarlet]

So no one watched this last night? I thought it was pretty good and stayed reasonably true to its roots (although a Camaro or Corvette would've been better than a Mustang). I hope it becomes a regular series.

I thought it was good, though I agree it would've been better if they'd used a Corvette or Camaro for KITT instead of a Mustang. I liked the way they tied in the original Knight Rider storyline. Definitely could watch it every week, though it wouldn't be a "must watch when it comes on" show. More of a DVR show.

Why would a Camaro or Corvette have been better? Because the original KITT was a Pontiac? That makes no sense. Or are you just saying you don't like Ford? Or that you somehow think the Camaro and Corvette are more badass? The Trans Am was not exceptional in its time either.

Regardless of the brand, the black on black racing stripes were awesome. :p

I'm not sure you can fault the show much. When I rewatch the original KR now it is very, very bad.

[Alan T]

This thread helps me re-affirm that everyone else has a far more critical eye when watching tv or movies. When people ask me for a movie suggestion, I always tell them that I am the wrong person to ask.. as long as I am entertained , its all good with me.

This show wasn't perfect, but I don't watch for perfect shows. I enjoyed the 2 hours and hope to see alot of it in the near future as a series. :)

[rjolley]

lordscarlet: Maybe because they're both GM brands? Also, the Camaro and Trans Am have always been very similar, just under different brands.

Alan T: I feel the same way. I started watching the show to be entertained and was. Can't ask for much more...

[Raiders Army]

Why would a Camaro or Corvette have been better? Because the original KITT was a Pontiac? That makes no sense. Or are you just saying you don't like Ford? Or that you somehow think the Camaro and Corvette are more badass? The Trans Am was not exceptional in its time either.

Regardless of the brand, the black on black racing stripes were awesome. :p

I'm not sure you can fault the show much. When I rewatch the original KR now it is very, very bad.

As said above, the Camaro was the Trans Am's sister car. Also, KITT (and KARR) weren't just Trans Ams. They were based on the Trans Am and looked better (at the time). The KITT that was on TV last Sunday looked like a Mustang you could buy at a Ford dealership...albeit an expensive Mustang.

[Anthony]

Why would a Camaro or Corvette have been better? Because the original KITT was a Pontiac? That makes no sense. Or are you just saying you don't like Ford? Or that you somehow think the Camaro and Corvette are more badass? The Trans Am was not exceptional in its time either.

Regardless of the brand, the black on black racing stripes were awesome. :p

I'm not sure you can fault the show much. When I rewatch the original KR now it is very, very bad.

it looks nothing like the old version (the car). when you recreate an icon, you should try to stay as close to the original as possible. there won't be another David Hoff - that's hard to replace. you can, howvever, simply get an updated looking version of KITT. that's not hard. a corvette or even the new Camaro would've been closer to the original.

the whole reason you recreate a show is because you think the same premise would work w/ a new generation, all it would need would be more topical plots and fresher special effects. but you do so trying to stay as close to the original as you can where appropriate. there is simply no reason to just change the car that looks nothing like KITT.

[lordscarlet]

There isn't a current camaro, is there? Or am I that out of it with cars. I can buy the camaro/trans am connection.. but not the Corvette. There is no car out there that looks like a trans am.

[Anthony]

i give you the new Camaro (you might recognize it from the Transformers movie last summer):

http://www.madness-us-cars.com/actualite-vehicules-americains/camaro-transformers-1.jpg

put that car in black and a blinking red light flashing side to side on the front fender and i'd watch this show.

[rjolley]

There's a Camaro concept car: http://www.automobilemag.com/auto_shows/naias_2006/0601_chevrolet_camaro_concept/index.html

Was beaten to it. :)

As for the Corvette, eh, I still go with the GM thing.

[lordscarlet]

Right, the Bumblebee Camaro. Still looks nothing like the Trans Am, and it isn't on the road yet.

[Karlifornia]

What about the Dodge Challenger?

[saldana]

i could really give a shit about what kind of car it was..i was more concerned about the giant holes in the story....like the fact that the 2 bad guys that were chasing kit up the mountian road were able to go down the mountain, back to stanford, meet the other two, triangulate on the daughters cell phone, and get to the Montecito (did anyone else notice that) within 5 minutes of KITT, who was driving 180 miles an hour.

or the fact that KITT the super car was able to be hacked in 45 seconds?

or the fact that the bad guys just happened to be 12 miles away from the hotel the professor was staying at when they didnt actually know where they were going, and got there before KITT, going 180 miles an hour?

do a little bit better with the actual story and I will be watching.

[lordscarlet]

the Montecito (did anyone else notice that)

Not only did I notice it, but I was expecting it as soon as they mentioned Vegas. :)

[rjolley]

Didn't get the distance thing, but caught the hacking of KITT in 45 seconds. But he did look the part. Maybe he stayed at a Holiday Inn the night before?

I thought the hotel happened to be on the way to the house, which is where the bad guys were going when they found out the professor was still alive.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Not really any surprise but snipped from an article about NBC's announcement (http://www.medialifemagazine.com/artman2/publish/Television_44/NBC_We_re_going_to_a_full-year_season.asp) that they're going to a 12 month programming schedule

... Silverman said yesterday that it will likely return as a full series

It also indicated that the network will likely seek more non-traditional revenue deals such as the KR one with Ford.

[Passacaglia]

lurker just sent me this:

"David Hasselhoff is in talks to appear on NBC's "Knight Rider," reprising his role as Michael Knight from the original series."

[Ksyrup]

lurker just sent me this:

"David Hasselhoff is in talks to appear on NBC's "Knight Rider," reprising his role as Michael Knight from the original series."

In addition, David Hasselhoff -- who starred in the popular lead role as Michael Knight for four seasons during the original series' run -- returns in this sequel as the same character during a special guest appearance.

I believe this is already a done deal.

[DanGarion]

So who watched it tonight? It was much better then the movie, but still not really that great. The girl in it is pretty hot and looks like nice in a bra and panties.

[stevew]

The budget gps company MIO is making a car unit that calls out directions in the voice of Kitt.

[Alan T]

So who watched it tonight? It was much better then the movie, but still not really that great. The girl in it is pretty hot and looks like nice in a bra and panties.


I watched it. Wednesday night seems to be really light on other programming options so it was either that or turn off my tv last night.

It was ok, nothing great.. but not 90210 waste of my time.

[gstelmack]

Wife and I enjoyed it. Nice diversion. They did too much with cliffhangers right before commericals, though, along with too many short commercial breaks.