Brandon Larracuente, Emily Tosta, Niko Guardado and newcomer Elle Paris Legaspi join Freeform’s immigration spin on ’90s drama
Reid Nakamura | October 22, 2018 @ 1:23 PM
Last Updated: October 22, 2018 @ 3:30 PM
Fox
Freeform’s “Party of Five” reboot has found four of its leads.
Set to star in the drama, which is currently in the pilot stage at the network, are Brandon Larracuente (“13 Reasons Why”), Emily Tosta (“Mayans M.C.”), Niko Guardado (“The Goldbergs”) and newcomer Elle Paris Legaspi.
The four actors will play the Buendias siblings, who must navigate daily life struggles to survive as a family unit after their parents are suddenly deported back to Mexico.
Larracuente will play Emilio, an aspiring musician and the oldest son of Gloria and Javier Buendia. Emilio is the reason his parents crossed the Mexican border into the U.S. nearly 25 years ago in hopes of a better life. Although the oldest, he’s the least responsible of the siblings, and had been enjoying living away from home and the freedom that came with it until his parents’ status was threatened.
From left: Brandon Larracuente, Emily Tosta, Niko Guardado, Elle Paris Legaspi (Photo credit: Getty Images / Courtesy of Freeform)
Tosta will play Lucia, a straight-A student with lofty college ambitions until her parents run into trouble with immigration. Their circumstances force her to re-evaluate her disposition to play by the rules. She quickly becomes resistant to authority, politically radicalized and rebellious to her presumed duties as the oldest sister.
Guardado will play Beto, the second oldest brother of the family who steps up in the midst of turmoil. While struggling with sports, girls and school, he soon discovers that being the head of his family comes easily to him and gives him the self-respect and sense of purpose he has never had before.
Legaspi will play Valentina, the precocious and resourceful youngest sister. Forced to face adolescence without her mother, she’s desperately afraid of what the future holds, and her vulnerability will require her older siblings to step up and offer the structure and support that they may not be wholly equipped to provide.
The reboot of the ’90s Fox drama is written and executive produced by original series creators Chris Keyser and Amy Lippman. Rodrigo Garcia will direct the pilot and serve as executive producer. Michael Zebede will also co-executive produce the project, which hails from Sony Pictures Television.
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"Charlie's Angels"
"Charlie's Angels" perfectly captured the goofiness of the '70s, but it felt painfully out of date in 2011. Critics and audiences agreed: It was canceled after three episodes.
"Ironside"
Blair Underwood has done some memorable TV work, starting with his career-making role on "L.A. Law." But his 2013 take on the Raymond Burr crime drama was yanked from NBC's air even faster than you can say "LAX" or "The Event."
"The Bionic Woman"
A 2007 take on the "Six Million Dollar Man" spinoff, this NBC show's original sin was casting "Battlestar Galactica" ass-kicker Katee Sackhoff as the recurring villain rather than the lead.
"Knight Rider"
Like so much '80s television, the original "Knight Rider" is over-celebrated. But NBC's 2008 version lacked even the original's dumb charms — and David Hasselhoff.
"The Returned"
SundanceTV had an international hit on its hands with the French-language moody zombie thriller. An English adaptation was of course inevitable, but Damon Lindelof's A&E remake never quite found its audience, despite gaining the support of critics. Luckily, the original French series is still ongoing.
"Melrose Place"
The classic nighttime soap got a CW makeover in 2009, but the brand wasn't enough to keep an audience interested, especially on a network that was doing rich young people drama better on shows like "Gossip Girl" and even "90210."
"Prime Suspect"
Helen Mirren broke out big time as a rare female detective fighting crime and the sexism of her fellow cops in a hit series first introduced in 1991. But NBC's 2011 version, starring Maria Bello, struggled to find its voice and lasted just 13 episodes.
"Gracepoint"
"Broadchurch" captivated U.K. audiences with its tense murder mystery format, but when the U.S. tried to replicate its magic - with original star David Tennant in tow - it just never quite managed. Needless to say, "Broadchurch" is producing a third season, and "Gracepoint" was canceled after just one.
"Mockingbird Lane"
Bryan Fuller tried to put his stamp on a reboot of "The Munsters," and it's still a bit of a cult classic among his fervent fans, but NBC never ordered the show to series. At least we will always have the pilot, which aired in 2012, which is more than you can say for most pilots that don't get picked up to series.
"The IT Crowd"
This hilarious British series that helped launch Chris O'Dowd's career ran for four seasons. It's American counterpart -- not so much. The across-the-pond adaptation with Joel McHale was ordered to pilot but failed to get picked up at NBC.
"Dragnet"
Jack Webb and Ben Alexander starred in the original 1950's police procedural that became a major hit. Unfortunately, the Ed O'Neill and Ethan Embry reboot in 2003 failed to find similar success. It was cancelled after two seasons.
"Kojak"
Another police procedural bound to be rebooted, Telly Savalas starred as the chrome-domed detective in the 1970's series. Ving Rhames took the reins in 2005, but only made it to nine episodes.
"The Muppets"
ABC's reboot of "The Muppets" was one of the most highly anticipated new shows of the 2015-16 TV season, but the inside look at the adult lives of Kermit and company failed to resonate with fans.
"Heroes Reborn"
Beyond "Chuck" star Zachary Levi, NBC's bland "event series" reboot of 2006's "Heroes" brought nothing new or interesting to the table.
"24: Legacy"
Corey Hawkins starred in this Kiefer Sutherland-less "24" reboot that maintained the show's real-time structure and some of the original show's flaws, but also managed to be cancelled in real time. "24: Legacy" had a big debut following the Super Bowl in 2017 but dropped off sharply afterward and was done after just one season. At the time of the cancellation Fox was still considering continuing the "24" franchise.
Fox
"MacGyver"
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CBS
"Fuller House"
Netflix's rebooted take on "Full House" is doing just fine for the streaming service, having been renewed for a fourth season, but it got off to a truly rocky start with critics who complained that the nostalgia factor of seeing a grown up DJ, Stephanie and Kimmy Gibler wore off quickly.
Netflix
"The Odd Couple"
Matthew Perry and Thomas Lennon were no Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon, or Tony Randall and Jack Klugman for that matter. The reboot lasted three seasons, but the canned, laugh track sitcom felt very old fashioned and led to some miserable ratings. Matthew Perry even tweeted out one month ahead of schedule that the show was cancelled when he saw his face painted over on his stage door.
CBS
"Dynasty"
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With reboots of “Charmed” and “Magnum PI” on the way, TheWrap looks at TV revivals that never should’ve happened
Revivals of "Arrested Development" and the upcoming "Murphy Brown" are making waves as well new versions of "Charmed" and "Magnum PI" coming soon. But will they all be worthy of watching? TheWrap looks at the reboots of classic TV shows that should've gotten the boot from the start.
