NBC’s Reboot of 1970s' Biggest Crime Classic Taps a 'Bones' Favorite To Star

2 weeks ago 13

David Boreanaz flashes his badge and stands next to Emily Deschanel in 'Bones'

Published Feb 12, 2026, 3:39 PM EST

A cinematic obsessive with the filmic palate of a starving raccoon, Rob London will watch pretty much anything once. With a mind like a steel trap, he's an endless fount of movie and TV trivia, borne from a misspent youth of watching monster movies on TV, perusing the sun-faded goods at the local video rental shop, and staining his fingers with ink from the Video Movie Guide. Areas of interest include science fiction, film noir, horror flicks, '70s disaster pictures, Bond movies, '90s action, giant robots, dinosaurs, super heroes, and the exuberantly schlocky output of Cannon Films. He also enjoys both Star Trek and Star Wars when they're good, and maybe even more when they're bad. As a Canadian, he also has a vested interest in Canadian movies and TV shows, especially the cheesier ones dubbed "Canuxploitation."

An expert on Marvel Comics, he has also written for the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, and is a member of the Marvel Research Team. He can frequently be found pontificating on comic-book continuity or bemoaning the misfortunes of the Toronto Maple Leafs on his Twitter account.

With SEAL Team honorably discharged after seven seasons, the ever-busy David Boreanaz is back on the case. This time, he's stepping into the shoes of one of the most iconic detectives in TV history: Jim Rockford. Boreanaz has signed on to star in NBC's reboot of The Rockford Files, which is now set to shoot its pilot episode.

According to reports, Boreanaz will shoot the show's pilot in Atlanta, with some additional filming in Los Angeles to capture the show's beach-side setting. While the series hasn't been picked up to series yet, the presence of Boreanaz is a good omen: he's been the leading man on several long-running series. Starting as a recurring character on the first season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, he was soon upgraded to a regular before leaving for his own spin-off, Angel, which ran for four seasons. Amusingly, that series also had him playing a Los Angeles-based detective, although Jim Rockford probably won't share the vampiric Angel's aversion to sunlight and garlic. Following Angel, he led the forensic detective procedural Bones with Emily Deschanel for 12 seasons, then enlisted in the military drama SEAL Team for another seven.

What Is 'The Rockford Files' About'?

Created by Roy Huggins and Stephen J. Cannell in 1974, The Rockford Files followed Jim Rockford (James Garner), an ex-con turned private eye, as he attempted to help the helpless for a modest fee of $200 a day, plus expenses. Perpetually broke, Rockford lived in a beach-side trailer with his affable elderly father, Rocky (Noah Beery), and frequently enlisted the aid of his friend, LAPD officer Dennis Becker (Joe Santos) to get him out of trouble with the local cops. Frequently getting him into trouble was Angel Martin (Stuart Margolin), an acquaintance of Rockford's from prison whose harebrained get-rich-quick schemes invariably blew up in everyone's faces. The series' trademarks included its memorable theme tune, high-octane car chases involving Rockford's beloved gold Pontiac Firebird, and the comedic messages on Rockford's answering machine that opened every episode. The series ended after six seasons in 1980, but was revived for a series of TV reunion movies in the 1990s. NBC also attempted to reboot it in 2009 with Dermot Mulroney as Rockford, but that attempt never made it past the pilot stage.

The reboot of The Rockford Files is created by Mike Daniels (Ponies, Sons of Anarchy). It will be produced by Sarah Timberman and Carl Beverly for Universal Television.

David Boreanaz will star in a reboot of The Rockford Files for NBC; no release date has yet been announced. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.

Release Date 1974 - 1980-00-00

Directors William Wiard, Lawrence Doheny, Ivan Dixon, Jerry London, Reza Badiyi, Russ Mayberry, Jackie Cooper, Lou Antonio, Corey Allen, Jeannot Szwarc, Stephen J. Cannell, Alexander Grasshoff, Arnold Laven, Harry Falk, John Patterson, Stuart Margolin, Alexander Singer, Bernard L. Kowalski, Bernard McEveety, Bruce Kessler, Charles S. Dubin, Christian I. Nyby II, Dana Elcar, Hy Averback

Writers Gordon T. Dawson, Rudolph Borchert, Don Carlos Dunaway, Edward J. Lakso, David Taylor, Donald L. Gold, Rogers Turrentine, Walter Dallenbach, Lester Wm. Berke, William R. Stratton, Jo Swerling Jr., Leigh Brackett, Mitch Lindemann, Robert Hamner, Zekial Marko, Howard Berk, Shel Willens, Eric Kaldor, Gloryette Clark