The success rate for prime-time reboots and film adaptations hasn't exactly been encouraging (see: Limitless,Minority Report, Uncle Buck), but empirical data has never stopped stubborn networks from trying.
So behold this fall's slate of reimagined and resurrected franchise properties — running the gamut from beloved '80s action serials to unassuming, turn-of-the-2000s sci-fi thrillers starring Dennis Quaid — all burnished and repackaged for your viewing pleasure. Or, if recent history is any indication, your collective ambivalence.
1. "Lethal Weapon" (September 21, Fox)
Based on: Director Richard Donner and writer Shane Black's touchstone 1987 buddy-cop action-comedy.
The plot: Unlikely partners Roger Murtaugh (Damon Wayans) and Martin Riggs (Rectify's Clayne Crawford) battle bad guys, while flummoxing their poor chief (Kevin Rahm) and shrink/presumed love interest Dr. Cahill (Jordana Brewster), in modern-day Los Angeles.
What if I haven't seen its predecessor? You might have less déjà vu than those who have, or be less prone to compare Crawford and Wayans's chemistry to Mel Gibson and Danny Glover's. But all things being equal, the film was ostensibly a procedural, and so is this reboot. You'll be fine.
2. "The Exorcist" (September 23, Fox)
Based on: William Friedkin's landmark 1973 creepfest, itself adapted from William Peter Blatty's 1971 novel.
The plot: Two priests (Alfonso Herrera and Ben Daniels) with wildly different methods contend with the evil lurking inside Mr. and Mrs. Rance's (Alan Ruck and Geena Davis) deceptively All-American family home.
What if I haven't seen its predecessor? Then shame on you. But barring the potential for an occasional Easter egg, this iteration aims to spook fans of Emily Rose and Outcast as much those who swear by Linda Blair's head-turning performance in the original.
3. "MacGyver" (September 23, CBS)
Based on: The late-'80s action-procedural about a man so adept at solving crises with minimal resources that his name became a recognized verb in the Oxford Dictionaries.
The plot: MacGyver (Lucas Till) is now a millennial, but no less up for the task of top-secret government projects on a tight budget. Brainy cohort and presumed love interest Riley (Tristin Mays) and wacky roommate Wilt (Justin Hires, bouncing back after Rush Hour's cancellation) keep the know-it-all problem-solver on his toes.
What if I haven't seen its predecessor? Well, then surely you've seenMacGruber? Either way, it's neither here nor there — the new MacGyver isn't the old one's son or any such relation. A wise choice when resurrecting a 31-year-old property of modest repute.
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