Fox Finds Its 9-1-1 Replacement 3 Years After Catastrophic Cancellation
Misty Layne started as an actor and sketch comedy writer before deciding to concentrate mainly on writing. Utilizing both her love of television and film and her behind-the-scenes knowledge, she began a website reviewing films in 2013, with a focus on horror and indie media. Eventually, she began writing about all things television and film for other sites as well. Misty shares a home with five cats, a ton of books, and a fairly impressive vinyl collection.
Three years ago, Fox canceled 9-1-1 despite its massive ratings and popularity. Since then, the network hasn’t aired a show as action-packed or melodramatic, leaving a void on the network. However, Fox appears to be filling it in January 2027 with a Baywatch reboot.
The original Baywatch series was a cultural phenomenon. Originally, Baywatch was canceled after a single season, but managed to survive in syndication — thanks to David Hasselhoff buying the rights — and went on to become the most-watched TV show in the world. Despite consistently negative reviews, the show about attractive lifeguards saving people in dramatic ways took over the public’s imagination.
The newest trailer for the Baywatch reboot suggests it will follow the same formula as both the original series and 9-1-1, so Fox may have finally found its replacement series. Only time will tell whether the new Baywatch will do as well as the first responders procedural.
Fox's Baywatch Reboot Looks Very Much Like 9-1-1 On The Beach
The recently released trailer for the Baywatch reboot makes the show look like 9-1-1, but on a beach. Arrow's Stephen Amell plays Hobie Buchannon (a character from the original series), whose estranged daughter, whom he never knew existed, shows up in California, so there’s plenty of the delicious family drama 9-1-1 is known for. More than that, Baywatch seems to utilize the cheesy melodrama found on 9-1-1 paired with ridiculous emergencies.
9-1-1 is known for having some of the wildest, most out-there emergencies — like Athena and Hen getting temporarily trapped in space. The Baywatch trailer shows a similarly over-the-top predicament when a small plane hits the parachute of a couple of parasailers. While the chances of this actually happening are likely low, that isn’t the ridiculous part of the emergency; no, it's the Baywatch crew jumping on a boat to pull the plane, now underwater, out in a highly dramatic fashion.
It would be a fairly tame emergency for the 9-1-1 crew, but if the new Baywatch trailer is showing this as a teaser, then it seems reasonable to expect that the show will feature bigger emergencies with incredibly high stakes. The original Baywatch often went for the highly implausible emergencies, too, like the time a helicopter crashed into shark-infested waters.
Why Fox Canceled 9-1-1 After 6 Seasons
9-1-1 didn’t just have great ratings when it was on Fox; it was Fox’s highest-rated show the entire six seasons it aired on the network. This made Fox's cancelation seem all the more odd (thankfully, 9-1-1 was saved by ABC). However, Fox did have a legitimate reason for the decision — the series was getting increasingly expensive to produce as it went on. Considering 9-1-1 emergencies included a tsunami, a massive earthquake, and a train wreck, it’s easy to see how expenses might have skyrocketed.
There was also the fact that Fox didn’t actually own 9-1-1. When 9-1-1 was ordered to series, both 20th Century Fox TV and Fox were under 21st Century Fox. However, during 9-1-1’s run, Disney acquired the company and television studio. This meant the Fox network was an entity unto itself, but Disney now owned the show. Fox was trying to move away from this business model and focus on owned content, which also contributed to the decision to cancel the series.
Question 1 of 3
Since Fox co-owns the rights to the Baywatch reboot with Fremantle, there should be no issues with the show. However, if the series is starting off with saving planes and pilots from under the ocean by dragging them out with a boat while a lifeguard rides on top of the plane, expenses could become an issue in the future. It really depends on just how big Fox decides to go. Hopefully, though, Baywatch will stay under budget and become the perfect replacement after losing 9-1-1.
- Network
- FOX, Hulu
- Showrunner
- Lara Olsen, Matt Nix
- Directors
- Michael Goi, McG
Cast
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Stephen Amell
Hobie Buchannon
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Jessica Belkin
Charlie
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Thaddeus LaGrone
Brad
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Nat
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