'MacGyver' Revival Latest News: CBS Enlists 'Furious 7' Director James Wan

By Arvin Donguines, Christian Post Contributor Monday, October 05, 2015

CBS is reportedly in the works to bring back the 1980s action classic show, "MacGyver."

The report from Entertainment Weekly said that the network is officially starting to work on an updated version of the Lee David Zlotoff series. As quoted from CBS Studios' official statement, the project will be "a reimagining of the television series" that follows a "20-something MacGyver" who got recruited into a secret organization where "his knack for solving problems in unconventional ways to help prevent disasters from happening" is always put to the test.

Running the show is CBS veteran Scott Gemmill while Michael Clear and Henry Winkler will serve as executive producers, the site said. Joining the list is the "Furious 7" and "Insidious" director James Wan, who is also said to be helming the pilot of the revival series.

EW revealed that Wan is, in fact, not a stranger on the project. It was revealed that the 38-year-old horror genius has been advocating making a MacGyver full-length feature.

In a conversation with CraveOnline on January, Wan divulged his concept of a film based on the Richard Dean Anderson-starred show. He told the media outlet (via EW) that he would love to see a "young college MacGyver who went to Boston..." He is "really brilliant…very crafty," and adept on "all kinds of science and mathematics and engineering." But his smartness would often make him feel "a bit of an outsider."

"He gets blamed for something that he had designed, something really big that's something everyone wanted, and now someone has weaponized it and everyone's coming after him," Wan shared to CO (via EW).

CBS, meanwhile, is remaining tight-lipped on the details regarding the scale of the project. It was heard, however, that the network has already handed out a put-pilot commitment.

The original "MacGyver" ran for seven seasons on ABC, from 1985 to 1992 and saw the acts of Anderson, as the titular character; Dana Elcar, as MacGyver's boss; and Bruce McGill as the hero's comical best friend.

Stay tuned for more updates.