Published: January 17, 2003
preview / download BURBANK, Calif. — January 17, 2003 — Following on the success of its Hunter: Return to Justice reunion movie, NBC will broadcast an updated series version of the cop drama Hunter – starring original stars Fred Dryer and Stepfanie Kramer – to its former Saturday-night beat beginning April 12, it was announced today by Jeff Zucker, President, NBC Entertainment.
We believe that the Hunter series stands the test of time and remains as a viable series entry for NBCs new Saturday night programming this spring, said Zucker. Fred and Stepfanie have a special on-screen chemistry and rapport that viewers continue to value.
The new series will premiere with a two-hour movie, Hunter: Back in Force, on Saturday, April 12 (9-11 p.m. ET) and will return on Saturdays (10-11 p.m. ET) with five subsequent one hour episodes.
Hunter: Return to Justice — based on the series that ran on NBC from 1984-91 — was broadcast last November 16 and reunited Lt. Rick Hunter (Dryer) and his former partner DeeDee McCall (Kramer) after Hunter visited San Diego to see his old friend. However, Hunter found himself pressed into service once again when McCalls fiance – San Diego mayoral candidate Roger Prescott — killed an intruder during a home robbery and unleashed a mysterious chain of events.
The movie scored a 2.8 rating and 8 share among adults 18-49 and attracted 10.5 million viewers overall. The reunion movie delivered what was at the time NBC’s highest-rated Saturday of the season, up 50 percent versus results for the same night a year earlier.
Hunter is produced by Vic Schiro and Scott Levitta (Silk Stalkings). Dryer, Emmy Award winner Stephen J. Cannell (The Rockford Files), Stu Segall (The Chronicle) and Frank Lupo (Wiseguy) serve as executive producers.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Claudine Ricanor, NBC Entertainment Publicity, 818/840-3629
