‘The Wonder Years’ Reboot Scores Major Win at ABC

A reboot of the hit 1980s series The Wonder Years moved one step closer to becoming a reality. ABC put in a pilot order for the show, which will look at the same time period as the original series, but from a Black family’s perspective instead. It was written by Saladin Patterson and includes Empire co-creator Lee Daniels as an executive producer.

ABC put in a pilot production commitment last summer, but it was not until Friday that the project officially received a pilot order, reports Deadline. The pilot is set to shoot this spring. The new Wonder Years will be set in Montgomery, Alabama, and follow a Black family during the same years covered in the original series, 1968 to 1973. Patterson, whose credits include The Big Bang Theory and Psych, will write and executive produce, with original series star Fred Savage signed to direct. Daniels, Marc Velez, and Savage are also executive producers. Wonder Years co-creator Neal Marlens signed on as a consultant. 20th Television will produce it.

The Wonder Years aired on ABC from 1988 to 1993 and was created by Marlens and Carol Black. The show followed the Arnold family from the perspective of Savage’s Kevin Arnold. Daniel Stern narrated the show as an adult Kevin. The Wonder Years is still considered one of the most influential shows of its era and won the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series in 1988. The show is available to stream on Hulu.

ABC handed pilot orders to two other shows. Maggie was created by Family Guy writer Maggie Mull, Martin Mull’s daughter, and Life in Pieces creator Justin Adler. It is based on a short film by Tim Curcio and centers on a young woman with psychic abilities. She can see how everyone else’s future pans out, but her present life is a disaster.

The other pilot is The Untitled Regina Hicks Project, a multi-camera comedy executive produced by Viola Davis, Julius Tennon, and Larry Wilmore. The project is about three former sorority sisters who reunite after several years at an important moment in life. They learned that no one would support you during dark times like their friends. The show has been in the works since 2017, but ABC is still looking to bring it to life. Hicks is a writer and executive producer on Insecure. She also co-wrote the upcoming third Sister Act movie.