“Knight Rider” movie green-lit, hero car TBD

Uh-oh, there’s another feature length movie based on a popular TV series from our past. We’ve been here before, with the Miami Vice movie’s depressing dialogue and insincere lack of style. The reincarnated Starsky and Hutch was a slapstick, clownish interpretation of the original’s wide range of emotions, but at least they kept the Ford Gran Torino hero car. So what’s in store for the Knight Rider movie, David Hasselhoff and the Pontiac Firebird also known as the Knight Industries Two Thousand?

Details are scant as of right now, but we do know the film is set in the present day. Deadline also reports the screenwriter is tasked with keeping the “anti-establishment tone” of the original series. If you only remember The Hoff’s cornball pick-up lines and the impressive car chases, I encourage you to watch the original two-hour pilot: The tone was anything but bubble-gum and cheap thrills.

That said, Knight Rider movie adaptations have bounced around Hollywood circles since 2002, so grab your crystal ball to see if this iteration is legit. Perhaps this is more of a continuation, not-Starsky-and-Hutch-ish remake? The odds of a David Hasselhoff cameo are likely, and William Daniels, the iconic voice of (most) K.I.T.T. vehicles, might be up for the gig since he was working up until 2017. Just keep Val Kilmer (from the 2008 TV show) away from the mic!

So what about the iconic car, the rolling creation of the fictional non-profit known as the Foundation of Law and Government?  The modern backdrop doesn’t bode well for 3rd-generation Pontiac Firebird fans: The Poncho’s low-slung, aerodynamic body makes for challenging undercover work when negotiating a sea of modern CUVs and bro-dozing trucks. Even if that’s gonna be the point, all the cheesy outdated technology stands out for all the wrong reasons…unless K.I.T.T. can be upgraded to Raspberry Pi?

Given the modern interpretation, I suspect the “new” K.I.T.T. will foreshadow our electrified future. It’s gotta be sleek and it’s likely coming from America: maybe a custom Tesla Model S or the upcoming Mustang Mach-E?  Both would fit the bill, much to the purist’s dismay. Only time will tell!