Tick another show off the list of 1980s/’90s TV series getting a revival. Candice Bergen will be returning to reprise her role as Murphy Brown in a revival of the series of the same name on CBS, and the first trailer is now available.
Unlike other sitcom reboots and revivals (Fuller House, we’re looking at you), however, this one could be far more politically and socially relevant. The trailer jumps right into it, showing how the most recent presidential election helped the title character (Bergen) get fired up again after leaving her job. Together with some of her former colleagues — played by original cast members Faith Ford, Joe Regalbuto, and Grant Shaud — she’ll navigate the world of modern media.
The original Murphy Brown series starred Bergen as the title character, an investigative journalist and news anchor for the fictional news magazine FYI. It ran for 10 seasons from 1988 to 1998. The series featured stories inspired by current events and had an impact on the 1992 presidential campaign — then-Vice President Dan Quayle even mentioned the show in a speech.
It comes as no surprise that CBS saw the opportunity to have Brown return to the news industry, 30 years after the original show began, and face a vastly different time plagued by distrust in the media. In a statement regarding the Murphy Brown revival, CBS notes that the show “returns [30 years later!] to a world of cable news, social media, fake news, and a very different political and cultural climate.”
With movies like The Post — which covers the true story of female Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham (played by Meryl Streep) and her pivotal role in helping expose the Pentagon Papers cover-up — getting lots of Oscar attention, and at a time when the spotlight is on news media, politics, and female issues, a series like Murphy Brown seems especially ripe for revival.
CBS ordered 13 episodes of the series, with Bergen returning along with original series creator Diane English, who will serve as writer/executive producer. Bergen is also credited as a producer, and Warner Bros. Television, which produced the original, will also return to produce this revival.
Through the run of the original series, Bergen took home five Emmy Awards for her role. The series itself received 62 Emmy nominations and 18 wins. In 2010, TV Guide named Murphy Brown one of the “25 Greatest TV Characters of All Time.” On review aggregate site Metacritic, the series has a 100 score, representing universal acclaim, and is reportedly the only series to have achieved a perfect rating on the site.
Updated on May 17, 2018: Added first trailer.
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