Ben Stiller is pitching one of his really old movies to NBC as a new comedy series .
His Red Hour Films company will be producing a television series pilot of the 1994 film Reality Bites , according to a report over at TheWrap .
Universal will produce the pilot based on the Ben Stiller-directed cult film.
The original film’s writer, Helen Childress, is back on board to pen the pilot , which will focus on college graduate Lelaina Pierce (played in the film by Winona Ryder) who attempts to kick-start her professional life by documenting the adventures of her social circle of Gen-X slackers.
Yes, it’s the exact same plot of the film, stretched into a potential series. It also seems that they’ll be keeping the ’90s grunge-era setting instead of updating to modern times. Therefore, a proper title for the show (if it’s picked up) could be That ’90s Show .
But what’s interesting is that the show could actually work in the modern day, and be completely relevant . Ryder’s Lelaina struggled to make a dent as a young professional and was constantly frustrated by the lack of ambition shared by her peers. Sound like anyone’s twentysomething recent college grad taking a nap on a couch in your basement right now?
But hey, maybe I’m being cynical. The ’90s-era theme could work, and there really isn’t a lot out there set in that time period, so it’ll be a nice breath of fresh air NBC’s lineup.
Still, I can’t help but wonder if Reality Bites: The Series ‘ success could have a devastating ripple effect inspiring the resurrection of other ’90s cult films. I’d get ready for Dazed and Confused: The Series, Empire Records: The Series, and SLC Punk: The Series if I were you.
