David Carradine starred in the lead role in the original “Kung Fu” series from 1972 to 1975. Image: courtesy of Warner Bros. Television via AFP Relaxnews
The “Kung Fu” TV series, which started running in 1972 on the United States TV network ABC, is the latest show to get reboot treatment. Fox, which launched the project last year, has some changes in store for the show’s pilot episode.
Albert Kim (“Sleepy Hollow”) is set to replace Wendy Mericle (“Arrow”) as screenwriter and executive producer. The plot will also take a different turn, since the story which was previously supposed to be set in the 1950s will now be set in the present day.
Billed as an action series, the show will follow a young Chinese-American woman who inherits her father’s kung fu studio. However, she soon discovers that it is actually a secret center for helping members of the Chinatown community. With the help of a former star pupil and ex-Marine, she vows to continue her father’s work. The mission also helps her discover things she never knew about her own cultural background and family heritage.
The series, produced by Warner Bros. Television and Berlanti Productions, would take the form of hour-long episodes if the pilot is picked up by the network.
Created by Ed Spielman, the original “Kung Fu” show ran from 1972 on ABC. It followed the adventures of Kwai Chang Caine, a Shaolin monk born to an American father and a Chinese mother played by David Carradine. After killing the Chinese Emperor’s nephew, he flees to the United States to find his half-brother. There, he travels the American Old West with a price on his head, armed only with his spiritual training and his martial arts skills. The show ran for three seasons before ending in 1975.
“Kung Fu” is one of several reboots launched this year, joining Netflix’s “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina” and “Magnum P.I.” at CBS. JB
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