Before reading the article in ScreenRant by Dan Zinski I was about ready to roll my eyes and wonder just what strange affliction has gripped the world that has people thinking that remakes and reboots are the only way to go. But thankfully The Fugitive, starring Kiefer Sutherland and rising star Boyd Holbrook seems to be just different enough that it could show some promise. Plus, the fact that it’s taken on a different sort of tone and tactic when forcing Holbrook’s character to run is definitely more in line with the era we live in now and should hopefully make it a little easier to watch. The whole idea of making this new streaming show anything like the original show and even the movie was bound to be something worthy of a groan and a serious amount of cringe. But it would appear that things aren’t going down that old tired road again and are changing up just enough to make it worth looking at to see just where it might go.
It seems as though this time the man that’s on the run, the fugitive in other words, will be fleeing after the bombing of a subway car that is blamed on him due to faulty facts and journalism that doesn’t take all the facts into account. Honestly this seems about as updated as it could possibly be, and it strikes close to home for many people since quite honestly the practice and habit of the media to vilify individuals these days has become an epidemic that has just about anyone and everyone in the public eye nervous and on edge since there’s no telling just who’s going to be put on the chopping block that is public opinion. This show might actually be something worth watching, and largely because of Sutherland and Holbrook. To be honest Sutherland has the same kind of attitude and mien that made Tommy Lee Jones so good in the movie, but he’s also got age on his side since it’s been a while since Jones has been able to move about as he did when chasing Harrison Ford. Holbrook is also nice and young by comparison and in truth has been coming up the ranks throughout the years as he’s been seen to star in masterful projects as well as questionable movies such as The Predator.
His work in Logan and as Cap Hatfield in Hatfields & McCoys was great enough that he’s been on the rise for several years now and rightfully so. The initial idea that it was going to be reboot would have been bad news without looking a little further into the idea and what was going to be done. Reboots have become a serious epidemic in show business these days as so many shows and movies have been subjected to this treatment and given over to the formulas that have been launched and relaunched again and again as Hollywood continues to try and pass what worked years ago onto the public an attempt to make them believe that it’s something brand new. It’s worked in many cases until someone has uncovered the truth by stating that the idea has been done before. In this case however it does seem as though enough is being changed that only the name of the series will really follow the overall story, as will the plot of one man running from law enforcement and trying to clear his name. Apart from that it seems as though the show is going to do something that’s either very different, or that it will provide something we haven’t seen in a long time. That sounds a lot more agreeable than taking what was great at one point but at the same time is not transferable to the current era.
For Sutherland it’s not such a huge jump, as Will Thorne of Variety might agree, since he’s been taking on roles that are similar or not too far removed from what he’ll be doing in this series, while Holbrook seems to be pretty versatile thus far in what he can do. Both actors are still easily viewed as being at the top, or close to it, when it comes to their careers, though Sutherland has the distinction of having played the game for a long time and been to the top in the past. Holbrook has been steadily rising, but it could be that one role or another will finally establish him as the kind of name that will finally be able to be called a household name of sorts. Putting them together in this series seems to make sense considering that it would appear that they’re evenly matched in terms of talent, and this is just one of the reasons why I’ll be checking this show out to see what it has to offer.
Follow Us
