After a sequel that was completely mental, there was a threequel that was, basically, the franchise just giving up. Then there was a TV series that lasted one season. Finally, there was a remake in 2014 that is a tad underrated as a movie, but also missing a key ingredient in what originally made RoboCop successful – Paul Verhoeven’s satirical loathing for aspects of American culture.
Will a new television series be any more successful? We will find out, as Amazon MGM Studios has greenlit the RoboCop TV series from James Wan (The Conjuring, Aquaman).
The series, which has been in development since early 2023, will have eight episodes. Wan will direct some episodes, and Peter Ocko (Lodge 49) will serve as showrunner. Wan, Michael Clear, and Rob Hackett will executive produce.
One thing that might bring the satire back is the inclusion of Ed Neumeier, original co-creator and co-writer of the original movie. It was Neumeier who encouraged Verhoeven to retain the tone for the original, citing 2000 AD comic Judge Dredd as an inspiration.
The Hollywood Reporter says this new version of RoboCop begins when a giant tech conglomerate collaborates with the local police department to introduce a technologically advanced enforcer to combat rising crime, a police officer who’s part man, part machine. In this version, RoboCop is Marc Kyle, not Alex Murphy. He is a soldier who died in combat.
