The Quantum Leap Reboot Adds Helen Shaver As Pilot Director And Executive Producer
They've been trying to relaunch "Quantum Leap" for a while now, but it feels like they're closer than ever now — and I gotta tell ya', I'm here for it. "Quantum Leap" was a cornerstone show for me growing up. Yes, I'm very old, but that show ruled and ruled in a very specific way. It's a show about empathy and selflessness, about helping others and seeing the world from perspectives that aren't your own.
The original series, which ran from 1989 to 1993, follows Dr. Samuel Beckett (Scott Bakula), a scientist spearheading a test for time travel who finds himself jumping around time, alright, but not in the way he expected. Sam teleports into the bodies of different people from different time periods and the only way he can "leap" to the next body is to fix something in that timeline that goes wrong.
Ultimately, he's hoping to find a way home, but that personal desire takes a backseat to making the world a better place, one leap at a time. Yes, the show has some problematic things in it when looked upon with 2022 eyes, but the heart was always in the right place. It might not be the best look to have a white guy "doing good" when jumping into a black man's body, but the ultimate goal of the show was incredibly progressive: it made its main character see the world from every perspective other than a wealthy white dude's.
Now, a new "Quantum Leap" series on NBC is going to continue the story set up in the original show, and "Station Eleven" director Helen Shaver has just been brought on board to direct the pilot. The sequel series is set in the present day and follows a team of scientists hoping to continue Sam's work — and perhaps even find out what happened to him. Here's the synopsis, (via Deadline):
It's been 30 years since Dr. Sam Beckett (Bakula) stepped into the Quantum Leap accelerator and vanished. Now a new team has been assembled to restart the project in the hopes of understanding the mysteries behind the machine and the man who created it.
Oh, Boy...
If you haven't had a chance to see "Station Eleven" yet... well, fix that. It's on HBO Max and it's fantastic. Shaver is not only directing the pilot for the "Quantum Leap" reboot, she's also coming on producer for the show, joining "La Brea" showrunners Steven Lilien and Bryan Wynbrandt, "Blindspot" creator Martin Gero and the original series creator Don Bellisario.
This bodes very well for this series. Shaver's work on "Station Eleven" is killer and she's also directed on "Westworld," "Vikings," "Snowpiercer," and "Lovecraft Country."
I think the world needs this boost of optimism right now. "Ted Lasso" can't do all the work pulling people out of the pandemic funk all by itself. We need this new breed of leapers who challenge their points of view and go out of their way to help people in need.
Deadline's report says that Scott Bakula hasn't yet signed on to return as Dr. Samuel Beckett, but c'mon. You know that's gonna happen. The season finale is gonna be them finding him, right? In this day and age it'd be borderline outrageous to not bring Bakula back in some form, especially since his character's resolution in the original series is so ambiguous.
This show has my attention and I'm anxious to see how this "Quantum Leap" rebootquel turns out.