The Greatest American Hero was before my time and looking back at it now, it’s definitely dated and a little silly, but there’s no denying that the core concept has some serious potential, and perhaps now more so than ever. We’ve got loads of superheroes on screen who have powers because they were injected with a special serum or bitten by a radioactive spider, but what if you just got hold of a suit that came with all the powers?
Apparently Phil Lord and Chris Miller are into the idea because it’s being reported that the 22 Jump Street and Lego Movie duo are developing a Greatest American Hero reboot for 20th Century Fox. Hit the jump for more on the project.
According to Deadline, Rodney Rothman, who worked on the 22 Jump Street script, wrote the hour-long action comedy pilot and will serve as executive producer alongside Lord and Miller as well as Tawnia McKiernan who’s actually Stephen J. Cannell’s daughter, the guy who created the original series that ran from 1981 to 1983 on ABC.
This iteration will center on an inner-city schoolteacher named Isaac who discovers a suit that gives him superpowers. It sounds cool and all, but the problem is, Isaac isn’t a fan of wearing it and he’s stuck trying to figure out how to use the thing through trial and error because he can’t find the instructions. The new show also includes a government handler character and he doesn’t agree with Isaac on how best to use the suit, to help others or for personal gain.
Again, I never watched the show so this idea just sounds totally fresh and fun. Plus, at this point, who could ever doubt something Lord and Miller have their hands on? They did 21 Jump Street and Lego justice. Why would it be any different with this? Lord and Miller got a put pilot commitment from Fox for this one, so there's a good shot the pilot will be picked up, but if Fox opts out of airing it, monetary penalties will result.
You can check out The Greatest American Hero’s popular theme song below. It actually hit #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 back in 1981.