‘Baywatch’ Reboot Could Be on the Horizon After 35mm Remastering

A Baywatch reboot may be on the way, following an HD remastering of the original 35MM film tapes of the original series.

According to Deadline, FremantleMedia International will soon begin pitching the HD-updated version of Baywatch to broadcasters worldwide, with their sights set on also exploring a reboot of the iconic series.

“The results are phenomenal,” FremantleMedia International COO Bob McCourt told Deadline of the 242 remastered episodes. “When you have the sea and obviously it’s set on the beach, it was such a colorful series, so that color really comes out when you put it into HD.”

Additionally, the remastered series — as well as the 2017 re-imagining film starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Zac Efron — has led the production company to explore the possibility of a series reboot.

“I think we thought the film might have given us reason to reboot the TV series, but given the mixed reviews that didn’t happen straight away,” McCourt said. “I think if this remastered version is sold extensively and a new audience comes to Baywatch, then it will give us a real indication as to whether a new series could be successful.”

“We would definitely think seriously about making a new series and maybe we’ll get approached by some broadcasters about making one,” he went on to say.

As McCourt mentioned, the Baywatch movie was met with a mixed-to-negative response when it was released. While it made more than $177 million on a budget of $69 million — indicating that audiences did show up for it — the critical response was not positive.

The film currently sits at a critics score of 18% on Rotten Tomatoes, with the Critics Consensus saying that the movie takes “its source material’s jiggle factor to R-rated levels, but lacks the original’s campy charm — and leaves its charming stars flailing in the shallows.”

“Thank heaven for Dwayne Johnson, whose foot-wide smile will not be switched off, and who saves the life of the movie,” wrote New Yoker film critic Anthony Lane. “Whether it deserves to be saved is another matter.”

“The biggest disappointment of this feature is that it’s not even so bad it’s good,” added Salon.com’s Gary M. Kramer.

Not every critic had an entirely negative take on the film however, as Megan Garber from The Atlantic scored the film fresh.

“Suffice it to say, too, that there’s a lot of delight to be had in the frothy union of the Bay and the Watch, much of it coming from Johnson, who carries the whole of this movie on his epically chiseled lats,” she wrote in her review.

While the HD-remastered reruns of Baywatch do not have a home just yet, fans should keep their eyes peel for updates on when and where the episodes will be airing.