Like Magnum, P.I., MacGyver, and Matlock before it, another classic TV staple from the ’70s and ’80s is poised for a comeback. According to Deadline, NBC has handed out a drama pilot order for a reboot of The Rockford Files, the beloved series that originally starred James Garner as an ex-con turned private investigator.
The Rockford Files Reboot
The new iteration hails from writer Mike Daniels (Sons of Anarchy), producers Sarah Timberman and Carl Beverly (Elementary), and Universal Television, and will serve as a contemporary update of the original show.
“Newly paroled after serving time for a crime he didn’t commit, James Rockford returns to life as a private investigator, relying on his charm and wit to solve cases across Los Angeles,” reads the official description. “It doesn’t take long for his quest for legitimacy to put him squarely in the crosshairs of both local law enforcement and organized crime.”
The Original Series
The original Rockford Files was created by Roy Huggins and Stephen J. Cannell, with Huggins having previously collaborated with James Garner on the hit Western series Maverick. The show ran for six seasons from 1974 to 1980 and became one of the defining private-eye dramas of its era, thanks in large part to Garner’s laid-back, everyman performance.
However, midway through the sixth season, Garner was advised by his doctors to step away from the series to recover from multiple injuries sustained over the years of demanding production. “The work on the show had worn me down to a nub,” he later admitted. During the resulting hiatus, NBC ultimately cancelled the series, citing escalating production costs and claiming the show was losing the studio millions of dollars.
The cancellation was followed by a lengthy legal battle between Garner and Universal over profits from the series, a dispute that dragged on for years. The case was eventually settled out of court in Garner’s favour, and the actor would later reprise his iconic role in a run of eight Rockford Files TV movies, which aired on CBS between 1994 and 1999, giving fans a long-delayed and welcome return to Jim Rockford.
Now, the big question: who has what it takes to step into the shoes of James Rockford?
