Fox orders series based on "Lethal Weapon," "Exorcist"
LOS ANGELES -- Two TV series based on big-screen hits will be part of Fox's new season.
"Lethal Weapon" starring Damon Wayans Sr. and "The Exorcist" with Geena Davis are set for its 2016-17 schedule, the network said Tuesday.
Wayans will play Roger Murtaugh, the part filled by Danny Glover in the 1987 "Lethal Weapon" and its sequels. Clayne Crawford stars as Martin Riggs, who was played by Mel Gibson in the buddy cop movies.
"The Exorcist" will revisit the 1973 movie's tale of a family coping with demonic possession. Besides the Oscar-winning Davis ("The Accidental Tourist," 1988) the cast includes Alfonso Herrera and Ben Daniels.
Fox's announcement jumped the gun on next week's annual new-season presentations to advertisers in New York City.
Two other dramas and two comedies were announced by the network, including:
-- "APB," inspired by real events, dramatizes a billionaire's plan to modernize a troubled Chicago police precinct. Justin Kirk, Natalie Martinez and Ernie Hudson are among the stars.
-- "Pitch," with Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Ali Larter and Mark Consuelos, focuses on a talented pitcher (Kylie Bunbury) who becomes the first woman to play Major League Baseball.
-- "Making History," a comedy-adventure show about a trio of time-traveling friends from two different centuries, stars Adam Pally, Leighton Meester and Yassir Lester.
-- "The Mick" is a sitcom starring Kaitlin Olson as Mackenzie "Mickey" Murphy, a hustler who finds herself in charge of her sister's kids after their wealthy parents flee criminal charges.