The reboot factory has brought us a shiny new gift, and it comes from one of Aaron Spelling’s classic productions. ABC is reincarnating Fantasy Island, the late ‘70s, early ‘80s series about a mysterious island where visitors pay to live out their dreams and desires.
In the original, Ricardo Montalbán played Mr. Roarke, the island’s charming host who wore matching white suits with his assistant, Tattoo (Hervé Villechaize). Instead of casting another male lead, the series will center on a powerful woman who runs a San Francisco-based company that allows clients to experience their innermost fantasies, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Fantasy Island: The Start Up? No word on whether the lead will have an assistant similar to Tattoo.
This isn’t the first attempt at a Fantasy Island revival. In 1998, ABC rebooted the show in a supernatural theme, with Malcolm McDowell in the role of Mr. Roake. It was canceled in the middle its first season. There was no Tattoo in that one, either—not like anyone could replace Hervé Villechaize, anyway.
Throughout its seven-year run, Fantasy Island was famous for having an illustrious roster of guest stars, bearing such glamorous names as Charo, Eva Gabor, Apollonia from Purple Rain and even Aaron’s daughter, Tori Spelling. If this reboot follows the original’s lead, it may just give Empire a run for its money in the cameo department.
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Image via ABC.
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