Hollywood loves a good story -but, as we previously pointed out last year, some sagas can just be a tad too long to fit into two-hour slots. Some of the greatest movies in film history got a much sweeter second life on television, making what was desired more available.
Westworld Expands
Last ditch effort: Michael Crichton was already tackling the heavy questions about artificial life way back in 1973, but on film, that particular ball could only be rolled so far; with television, there was more room to lie around and think. HBO’s Westworld (2016–2022) stretched the actual plot out across four seasons on consciousness, corporate power, and what it means to be human.
Stargate Travels Further
The 1994 adventure Stargate, from lauded action director Roland Emmerich and featuring Kurt Russell and James Spader (an ex-soda jerk), cracked the hatch to the galaxy -then TV opened it without so much as knocking. The ten seasons of Stargate SG-1 (1997–2007) on Showtime begat multiple spinoffs and soon became one of the largest sci-fi franchises in television history.
Clueless Goes to Television
By the time the credits rolled, Cher Horowitz never got a bye-bye. The hit 1995 comedy that starred Alicia Silverstone as Cher Horowitz grossed $56.6 million at the box office on a $12 million budget and was caught in the major eruption of content: Clueless (1996–1999) was a 3-season, 62-episode sitcom that aired mainly on ABC but also UPN, producers Amy Heckerling.
Fargo Gets Darker
The year was 1996, and one thing the world learned is that the Coen Brothers are without fail when delivering a decent crime thriller for only 7 million dollars that would go on to end up earning them over 60 million. In a similar snow-laden Midwestern vein, FX’s glorious anthology series Fargo (2014–present) aimed for the high-hanging-branch and hit the mark with its iconic second season, receiving praise that stood at an astounding 100 percent on Rotten Tomatoes from critics.
Buffy Returns Stronger
Buffy the Vampire Slayer Is Not a film. In 1992, Joss Whedon wasn’t So Excited About How His Show Adapted to film, so he took it back. But it was his TV reimagination (running 1997–2003) with Sarah Michelle Gellar that became an iconic cultural touchstone for the better part of two generations over seven cherished seasons of television.
Hannibal Reimagined
Hannibal Lecter, who you might remember from Anthony Hopkins’ iconic interpretation in the 1991 classic, The Silence of the Lambs. So 20 years later, NBC’s Hannibal (2013–2015) would take the role and recast it with Mads Mikkelsen and completely reinvent it. The show attracted a rabid international audience after three seasons of beautiful cinematic storytelling.
Training Day Continues
Giving this ideal fit for Denzel Washington’s Oscar-winning 2001 detective Alonzo Harris even more to nibble on, sending them on a crusade of righteousness. CBS offered it an almost randomly flung second chance with Training Day (2017), a brand new ensemble transplanting the original film’s taut moral quagmire into the weekly episodic world, once more through an alternate perspective.
Friday Night Lights
And the 2004 movie held a nugget of small-town Texas truth -with more, as NBC saw it. One of the most acclaimed dramas of all-time, it ran five seasons (2006–2011) and starred Kyle Chandler as he coped with a brutally realistic look at life through high school football/community identity.
The Karate Kid
The Karate Kid felt like the past tense. Then came Cobra Kai on YouTube Red in 2018 – and then we all threw the damn rule book out the window. Having run for six seasons and 65 episodes, the multiple award-winning series hit a high point of 100 percent Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes in season one, and has recently found its way to an all-new (and titanic) life on Netflix.
Limitless Keeps Going
Back in 2011, Limitless premiered and left audiences craving for more with Bradley Cooper. Another response was that CBS created a TV series called Limitless (2015-2016) set in the same universe as the film. Cooper took on the role of Eddie Morra while a newcomer learned the unwieldy potential of drug NZT-48.
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