Let's ignore the fact that the words "Baywatch movie" haven't been in a headline since the mid-90s. It appears that Bill Hader has just closed a deal to play the David Hasselfhoff character in Paramount's upcoming film reboot of the television series 'Baywatch,' which followed the adventures of a team of lifeguards. No, this isn't an extremely early April Fool's Day gag, it's really happening. 'Reno 911' creator Robert Ben Garant will be directing the new 'Baywatch,' which is said to be a parody of the spectacularly silly TV show. It has also been reported that Hasselhoff will be making a cameo in the movie as will buxom beauty Pamela Anderson. The plot will center around the lifeguards exploring an oil rig that turns out to be a meth lab. Jeremy Garelick and Peter Tolan have both written drafts of the script, with Garant doing a third pass, and the production is aiming for an April start date.

What the what?! This is the first I'm hearing of a 'Baywatch' movie, and my brain is ready to melt. I've heard people try and assuage their fears toward this project by bringing up '21 Jump Street.' True, that too was a movie based on a silly, long-forgotten television series, and indeed it ended up being wildly successful by being cleverly meta and self-effacing. However, it also had the benefit of Phil Lord and Chris Miller. '21 Jump Street' excelled because of its script and the surprisingly comically adept turn by Channing Tatum. While I will agree that Bill Hader is a more accomplished comedian than most of the folks in 'Jump Street,' I've never been a big fan of 'Reno 911,' nor do I have a great deal of confidence in Garant and the already twice-rewritten script from which he is working. It just seems that a show that was already such a self-parody is not the ripest source for...further parody. Let's just say, I feel it's going to take some of the bounce out of the film's concept.

What do you guys think? Would you go see a new 'Baywatch' movie? Is Bill Hader the right choice for The Hoff's role?

Source: The Wrap