The network is looking at turning the 2001 crime drama, which starred Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke, into a TV adaptation that would pick up essentially in current day: 15 years after the events from the film. Antoine Fuqua, who directed the movie, has also been tapped to direct and executive produce the TV show, along with Jerry Bruckheimer and Jonathan Littman, who will also executive produce. The latter has been involved in a few big TV projects, including the CSI franchises and The Amazing Race. Warner Bros. TV is also involved.
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There will be a level of authenticity to the show given that the pilot will be written by Will Beall (Gangster Squad, Castle), who is a former LAPD detective. He’ll serve as the fourth executive producer.
The story behind the original film begins in the same way as so many cop dramas: the rookie cop (played by Hawke) joins the veteran officer (Washington) as his new LAPD narcotics officer partner, and insert-what-happens-here. In a brilliant twist, however, “what happens here” is that training day for the newbie isn’t quite what he expected: the veteran cop is a corrupt tyrant. The movie takes place over a single day.
The film was hugely successful, with both actors grabbing Academy Awards nominations. Washington took home gold for Best Actor that year, in part thanks to his authentic portrayal of a larger-than-life character that was a complete departure from his typical casting as the dapper, good guy.
The 24-hour format of the film could lend itself perfectly to a serial version for TV, possibly allowing for each episode to cover a single day in the lives of these LAPD cops, or even a single hour. And given that many A-list Hollywood actors are looking at TV, it might not be crazy to consider Hawke potentially reprising his role in the TV series, though no casting information has been released. It’s a good bet Denzel won’t be back since — spoiler alert – he dies in the film. A few other big names appeared in the 2001 film as well, including Eva Mendes, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, and Macy Gray.
