Making Creator Headlines · Page 3
Biel Plans a New Generation of 7th Heaven
· New York time
Jessica Biel is executive producing a new version of 7th Heaven in development at CBS Studios through her Iron Ocean banner. The former star of the WB and CW family drama has discussed modernizing the series and creating a “safe space” on set, according to Deadline. Nearly two decades after the Camden family’s last television appearance, the proposed return includes an update to both the creative premise and the workplace ambition. The project remains in development, so the announcement is a statement of direction rather than evidence of a completed series or an operating production culture. Biel’s involvement provides a direct link to the original while placing her behind the camera in an executive role. Reboots have a delicate commercial assignment: make the old name recognizable while giving a new audience a reason to care. Family television also has to decide what a contemporary household sounds like when it is not merely reciting the previous generation’s scripts. The Camden dinner table may retain its familiarity, but nostalgia cannot be the only item on the menu. Otherwise the entire modernization consists of replacing a landline with a phone that everyone politely ignores during the same argument.
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