That '90s Show Will Feature An Updated Version Of The Original Theme Song
"HELLO, WISCONSIN!"
It's time to face the hard truth — we are now as far removed from the 1990s as "That '70s Show" was from the 1970s when it first ran from 1998-2006. I'll give you a moment to pick yourself up off the floor after having to accept the crushing passage of time, but the good news is that Netflix is debuting their 10-episode, live-action sequel, "That '90s Show," early next year. The streamer convinced show creators Bonnie and Terry Turner to follow up with the Forman family after all these years, with almost the entire original cast returning, except for Danny Masterson (who is currently on trial and charged with three counts of rape) and Lisa Robin Kelly who tragically passed away in 2013.
The original series focused on Eric Forman (Topher Grace) and his friends, Donna (Laura Prepon), Kelso (Ashton Kutcher), Jackie (Mila Kunis), and Fez (Wilmer Valderrama) as they came of age in Red and Kitty's (Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp) basement in Point Place, Wisconsin, but "That '90s Show" will focus on Eric and Donna's now teenage daughter Leia (Callie Haverda), who is of course named Leia, as she spends the summer of 1995 at her grandparents' place with her new friends.
"That '70s Show" is a cultural landmark of the late '90s and early '00s, from the quotable lines ("Well, damn, Jackie. I can't control the weather!") to the perfect use of Big Star's "In the Street" as adapted by Cheap Trick for the theme song. Looking toward "That '90s Show," finding a perfect theme was no easy task. Fortunately, as we learned from an interview in Variety, the team decided "if it ain't broke, don't fix it," and instead evolved the show's memorable sound for a new era.
The perfect song with the perfect '90s party sound
Gregg Mettler, who wrote on both "That '70s Show" and "3rd Rock from the Sun" for Bonnie and Terry Turner, tells Variety that, "the pressure was high to come up with something as memorable as 'That '70s Show' theme, 'In the Street.'" He says that he spent a lot of time listening to '90s playlists on Spotify to find the right song, but nothing was really capturing the vibe the creative team was chasing. There are so many factors to consider, like how ungodly expensive it can be to license music for film and television, or the fact "Yellowjackets," another show set in the 1990s, has been cleaning house with killer 1990s musical deep cuts in their episodes.
Ultimately, Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha, who serves as the composer on "That '90s Show," had a perfect idea. Mettler arranged a new version of "In the Street" in the style of 1990s music, with his daughter on vocals, and gave the track to Iha who recorded it with Brett Anderson of The Donnas fame. Getting Anderson on the track is a perfect choice, as The Donnas were the peak, teenage rock & roll party band of the 1990s, and even appeared in coming-of-age teen films like "Jawbreaker" and "Drive Me Crazy" because of it. "I love all the music from the 90s, all the genres, and we try our best to weave them all into the show," Mettler tells Variety. "And so, there's something for everybody inside the show."
I've got my fingers crossed for an appearance of Mark Morrison's "Return of the Mack."