Robocop
The 1987 ultra-violent satire on corporate America from Paul Verhoeven is getting a revival for television. When Amazon acquired the complete MGM library of properties, the company has been looking forward to rebooting several franchises for a new age. They are taking their sweet time on James Bond in an effort to get it right, the studio recently attempted to start a new Masters of the Universe film series, and now The Hollywood Reporter has reported that Amazon has greenlit a Robocop TV series, giving it an eight-episode order. The new show will come from James Wan and his Blumhouse Atomic Monster company, so it’s safe to assume the gore will make its return after a watered-down PG-13 reboot from 2014.
Robocop TV Series
The new Prime Video show will feature eight episodes and the showrunner will be Peter Ocko (Lodge 49). The executive producers on the project include Wan, Michael Clear and Rob Hackett.
The official series order description reads,
“Since its debut in 1987, Robocop has endured as one of the most iconic and culturally significant franchises in science fiction. What began as a bold social satire — blending visceral action with a critique of corporate greed, privatization, and the nature of identity — has resonated across generations, spawning sequels, television series, video games and comic books. Its themes of humanity versus technology and the consequences of unchecked corporate power feel more relevant today than ever, making it the ideal property to reimagine for a new era of television.”
Recently, it was rumored that the show would follow a different character. World of Reel had said, “The series will debut a new cybernetic lawman named Marc Kyle. Unlike Peter Weller’s Alex Murphy in Verhoeven’s ’87 original, Kyle will start off as a soldier rather than a police officer. Just as Murphy does in the first RoboCop, Marc Kyle will die—in a war rather than at the hands of crooks—before being remade as a cyborg and beginning his new life under Murphy’s tutelage.“
It’s worth noting that a Production List page that was last updated in early May also has this Marc Kyle information on it. They only disagree about the shooting location, as their site says the RoboCop TV series will be filming in Toronto rather than Vancouver.
Creatives excitement
Horror filmmaker and executive producer, James Wan, stated, “I’ve been a massive fan of RoboCop forever, so getting to help bring this world to television is a dream. What Paul Verhoeven created in 1987 was decades ahead of its time, and its questions about technology, identity, and who corporations really serve have only grown more urgent. With Peter’s distinctive vision and bold approach to storytelling, and alongside Ed and our partners at Amazon MGM Studios, we’re working to honor what made the original iconic and highlight its relevancy in this modern, tech-driven world, while building something unmistakably new for a global audience.”
Peter Friedlander, Head of Global Television, Amazon MGM Studios would also express his enthusiasm, “Robocop is a franchise that has meant something to audiences for nearly four decades — not just as an action spectacle, but as a sharp, provocative mirror of our relationship with technology and power. Peter Ocko has crafted a vision that honors the soul of what made the original so enduring while building something entirely fresh and urgent for today. Paired with the cinematic sensibility of James Wan and the team at Blumhouse Atomic Monster, we believe this series will captivate a whole new generation of fans on Prime Video.”
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