HOLLYWOOD, California — A remake of The Rockford Files TV series is in the works, and it will reportedly star Dermot Mulroney in the role James Garner embodied back in the late 1970s. Whether a '70s-vintage gold Pontiac Firebird Esprit will co-star is an open question. The news was promulgated on several TV-themed blogs and Web sites.
The Emmy-winning 1970s detective series was big on plaid, car chases and an ironic sense of humor. For the latter-day version's pilot, NBC has brought together House creator David Shore and executive producer Steve Carell of The Office fame, as well as Mulroney, who generally appears on the big screen and recently appeared in Burn after Reading.
Nostalgia for the vintage drama and the roomy performance car James Garner drove — and dinged up on occasion — is not limited to TV geeks and the members of Firebird owners' clubs. No less an enthusiast than GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz enthused, back in 2005, in speaking about the G6: "You have to go back to The Rockford Files to find a Pontiac that looked this good!"
Inside Line says: That trailer on the beach in Malibu is sitting on an even pricier piece of real estate than back in the 1970s. — Laura Sky Brown, Correspondent
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wjtinatl says:
08:03 PM, 04/29/2010
I'm now old enough to play Rocky... can I get the cool GMC pick-up?
lutze says:
06:57 PM, 03/03/2010
this movie will be a bigger hit than starsky and hutch and dukes of hazzard
debbaranko says:
11:05 PM, 03/02/2010
Give Jim Rockford a Gold Hurst Challenger.
lutze says:
07:25 PM, 03/02/2010
im one of the ones selling the car to them so they can make the movie
bswopes says:
02:57 PM, 03/02/2010
I loved Rockford Files and I have a hard time seeing them capture the feel of the original. Nothing against Dermot Mulroney, but I don't see him as a new James Garner. This'll probably do slightly better than the new Knight Rider.