Zachary Levi Will Star in HEROES REBORN Miniseries for NBC
NBC announced a sequel miniseries to Heroes called Heroes Reborn almost a year ago, but the reaction from fans was pretty mixed. Most people agree that the first season of Heroes was pretty solid, but then the quality of the storytelling began to dramatically decline. Some blame this on the writers' strike and some blame this on bad writing in general, but Heroes never really regained its footing after that first season. Heroes Reborn was supposed to have a digital series rolled out in 2014 that introduced the new characters we'd be seeing in the upcoming show, but when that never happened, I assumed the network had scrapped plans for this miniseries altogether. But that's apparently not the case.
TVLine reports that Chuck star Zachary Levi will lead the cast of the new show, and although he's said to be playing a "key" role, specific details about his character remain secret for now. Here's what Levi had to say:
“There are a few franchises I’ve always wanted to be a part of, and Heroes is one of them. Chuck gave me the opportunity to wield some fun powers, but an entire world with superpowers is a world I’ve always wanted to explore.
“I’m so grateful for the opportunity to work with Tim [Kring], and the awesome team around him, in bringing this to life. Moreover, to be working with NBC again is such a reward in itself, as my bonds and relationships there are deep.”
Levi is likable and he seems like a good guy, but I must admit I'm sort of bummed that he's returning to TV for this. I don't have a lot of faith that Tim Kring will be able to pull off the concept of resurrecting this show, largely because the TV landscape has changed so much since Heroes first debuted in 2006. We're practically in another era of television right now, and the idea of dropping an old show back into the cultural zeitgeist didn't exactly pan out for Arrested Development, and that was far more beloved than Heroes.
The only other cast member who's been confirmed for Heroes Reborn is Jack Coleman, who will reprise his role of Noah Bennett. The show is slated to premiere sometime in 2015. Here's the synopsis that was released last year; we'll see if that digital series ever materializes:
The saga behind the 2006 breakout series Heroes will continue as creator Tim Kring returns to the fold and develops new layers to his original superhero concept. This highly anticipated 13-episode miniseries will reconnect with the basic elements of the show's first season where ordinary people were waking up to the fact that they had extraordinary abilities. This series will be preceded by a new digital series that will introduce audiences to the new characters and storylines that will take the Heroes phenomenon to new places.