Hollywood has a long history of turning beloved TV shows intomovies, but some of those TV show movies have become forgotten. Whether to cash in on nostalgia or to boost the popularity of the show itself, the TV show movie has a long and storied past. Some shows lend themselves to big-screen adaptations, while others are less suited.
The 1990s were a particularly fertile time for TV show movies, withThe Brady Bunch,McHale’s Navy, andLeave it to Beaverall returning. While the aforementioned movies were all intentionally cheesy, and banked on nostalgia, they were quite popular at the box office. This kicked off a trend, with more and more shows getting the modern movie treatment.
Additionally, contemporary programslikeThe X-Filesmade the leap to the silver screen in the same decade, with the FBI sleuths on a case that was just too big to squeeze into the show. Whatever the reason that a TV show makes it into the realm of cinema, the purpose is to elevate what wasn’t possible on the small screen.
Franchises likeStar Trekare almost as famous for their movie adventures as the ones on television, and it’s a prime example of an elevation of the source material. However, not all TV show movies have stood the test of time, and some have been completely forgotten.
More than 20 years after the eponymous show went off the air,The A-Teamreturned with a brand-new cast in the explosive 2010 movie.Starring big names like Liam Neeson and Bradley Cooper, the Joe Carnathan action flick aimed to take the small-screen excitement of the show, and expand it for a modern audience.
Unfortunately,The A-Teamunderperformed at the box office, and got middling reviews. It did a decent job of bringing the titular mercenary group into the current era, and had exciting action, but it didn’t do enough to inspire audiences to show up to watch in theaters.
Tom Hanks' largelyforgotten ’80s comedy,Dragnet, was based on the iconic TV show from the early 1950s, but it took a novel approach to its subject matter. Co-starring Dan Aykroyd, 1987’sDragnetis a screwball parody film that takes the straight-laced mystery of the original and trades it in for goofy laughs.
there likely isn’t much nostalgia around its subject matter anymore
The movie got modest reviews, but deserves more credit for being a subversive comedy. It took guts to poke fun at such a beloved TV franchise, and the pairing of Aykroyd and Hanks works marvelously.Dragnetwas a box office success, but has faded from memory because there likely isn’t much nostalgia around its subject matter anymore.
2005 was far too late to release a movie version ofBewitched, but the Nora Ephron rom-com did have a chance to become a success.Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell co-star in a TV show film that tried to put some new spin on the story, and avoided being a direct adaptation.
The movie is about the making of a movie version ofBewitched, and Kidman’s character turns out to be a real witch. Unfortunately,the script fell flat and Ferrell lacked any chemistry with Kidman. The movie got poor reviews and was not financially satisfactory either. Because of this, there isn’t much reason to revisit it 20 years later.
In the middle of the nostalgic TV show movie boom of the mid-1990s,The Beverly Hillbilliesarrived to cash in on the movement.Adapting the sitcom more-or-less identically, the movie recasts all the main roles and brings the Clampetts into the modern day. The movie condenses the ongoing plot of the show into a feature-length experience.
The Beverly Hillbilliesran for 9 seasons between 1962 and 1971.
Naturally,The Beverly Hillbilliesgot terrible reviews and was generally lambasted by critics. However, it’s the perfect movie for what it is, and is an enjoyable flick with very low stakes and some light humor. Director Penelope Spheeris might have been known for more contemporary films, buther take onThe Beverly Hillbilliesis certainly better than its bad reviews.
Steve Irwin charmed and delighted TV viewers under his nickname “The Crocodile Hunter” for years, and the late educational icon actuallystarred in his own moviein 2002.The Crocodile Hunter:Collision Coursetapped the Aussie conservationist to play himself in an action/adventure story about CIA secrets.
Oddly enough,Collision Courseisn’t half bad, and has a strong supporting cast that makes up for Irwin’s lack of acting skills. Casting Irwin and his wife as themselves was a smart choice, and the movie is able to fulfill their mission of teaching the audience about wildlife conservation. Interestingly,Collision Courseturned out to be a box office success.
2017’sBaywatchmovie is an odd specimen of a TV show movie, largely becauseit doesn’t feel like an adaptation of the series. The Rock leads a somewhat tepid action comedy that is based on the popular 1990s series of the same name. It features other big stars like Zac Efron, but missed the mark in quite a few ways.
It isn’t spoofing the show, or even cashing in on nostalgia, and it seems as if the name is arbitrary
First and foremost,Baywatchcould easily have been any other generic action comedy, and it doesn’t feel particularly connected to its source material. It isn’t spoofing the show, or even cashing in on nostalgia, and it seems as if the name is arbitrary. The movie underperformed and quickly faded into obscurity.
Though the eponymous TV show was well over 40 years old by 2008,theGet Smartmovie was a surprising success. Anne Hathaway and Steve Carell are perfect co-stars, and the movie captures a bit of the irreverent charm of the original series.Get Smartwas a middling comedy, butit was certainly better than many other TV show movies.
With two A-listers getting top billing,Get Smartwas also a box office success, and seemed poised to launch the first TV show movie franchise of the new millennium. Unfortunately, a sequel never materialized, and fan interest in the franchise dwindled almost immediately.
Released after the conclusion of the first season of the eponymous TV series,Batmanhit theaters in summer 1966. The campy comic book movie saw many of the familiar faces from the show reprising their roles, including Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as Robin.The film is outrageously silly, and is essentially a spoof of comics in general.
Moments from the film have become part of Batman lore, and it exemplifies the mid-1960s. The series would run for another two seasons, andBatmanwas one of the first examples of a feature film being released alongside its TV show counterpart. SinceThe Dark Knight has made so many cinematic appearances,the first movie tends to be overshadowed.
Not to be confused with the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name, 1998’sThe Avengersadapted the popular British spy series from the ’60s. Witha cast headlined by all-stars like Uma Thurman, Ralph Fiennes, and Sean Connery, the movie had all the makings of a classic 1990s blockbuster. Unfortunately, it was nothing of the sort.
Witha nearly incomprehensible script and a tone that is somewhat mixed,The Avengerswas a notable blunder. Unlike other TV show movies which played for laughs, the 1998 film is series (except when it isn’t), and it can’t decide on an overall tone. The result is a confusing mess that appropriately has a score below 10% onRotten Tomatoes.
The Avengerswas nominated for a total of nine Razzie Awards, including Worst Picture.
In between the show’s tenures on Comedy Central and the Sci-Fi Channel,Mystery Science Theater: 3000served up their own movie. Following the same format as the TV show, the film followsMike and the bots as they’re forced to watch a horrible movie by Dr. Forrester, this time it’s Universal’s sci-fi stinker,This Island Earth.
The movie ups the budget and visuals, but keeps a lot of the charm of the series. WhileMystery Science Theater 3000: The Movieis certainly perfect for fans of the series, it’s still a somewhat lackluster outing. The jokes are funny, butthe running time is actually less than an episode of the show. This results in amoviethat somehow feels smaller than its small-screen counterpart.
