Legendary TV producer Norman Lear says that despite recent speculation, he has no plans to reboot his classic sitcom All in the Family. Talk broke out about a possible All in the Family reboot after Lear signed a two-year first look deal with Sony Pictures TV that opened the door on his classic shows possibly being revived in some form. Lear has already made a success with a reboot of One Day at a Time, the Bonnie Franklin sitcom that has been revived by Netflix with a Cuban-American spin.
The 96-year-old Lear had his first hit with All in the Family, a sitcom about the Bunker family starring Carroll O’Connor as the lovable bigot Archie, Jean Stapleton as his scatterbrained long-suffering wife Edith, Sally Struthers as their free-spirited daughter Gloria and Rob Reiner as Gloria’s hippie boyfriend Mike aka Meathead. Known for its controversial hot button storylines, All in the Family became a ratings giant throughout the 70s and is still regarded as perhaps the greatest sitcom in television history. In addition, Archie Bunker routinely finishes at or near the top of lists of the greatest television characters.The 96-year-old Lear had his first hit with All in the Family, a sitcom about the Bunker family starring Carroll O’Connor as the lovable bigot Archie, Jean Stapleton as his scatterbrained long-suffering wife Edith, Sally Struthers as their free-spirited daughter Gloria and Rob Reiner as Gloria’s hippie boyfriend Mike aka Meathead. Known for its controversial hot button storylines, All in the Family became a ratings giant throughout the 70s and is still regarded as perhaps the greatest sitcom in television history. In addition, Archie Bunker routinely finishes at or near the top of lists of the greatest television characters.According to creator Lear, All in the Family will remain a part of television history as he has no intention of rebooting the series. Speaking to Deadline at the TCA summer press tour, Lear clarified his plans regarding his famed shows under his new two-year first look deal with Sony, specifically promising he won’t bring back All in the Family or Maude “or any of them.” This would seem to also close the door on a possible Jeffersons reboot.
As for his actual plans, Lear said he’s working on ideas that have been gestating for many years, with hopes of finally bringing some of them to fruition. Lear explained:
“I’m looking at ideas you’ve never heard of. I have about 100 ideas that go back 30 or 40 years, some only 12 years or 10 years. These are the ideas that we’ve had and nurtured for the longest time that we will imagine or reimagine.”
Clearly, Lear is less interested in revisiting his classic shows and more interested in getting some new ideas up and running. Given the proliferation of revivals and reboots on television today, it’s easy to see why Lear might be tempted to go back into the catalog and dust off some old titles as he already did with One Day at a Time. In the case of All in the Family, it might actually be fascinating to see a character like Archie Bunker brought back to the small screen at a time of tremendous political divisiveness in America. Then again, after all the controversy with Roseanne Barr and her pro-Trump take on Roseanne (not to mention her off-screen activities), perhaps it’s best that Archie Bunker not be brought back to stir up more trouble and possibly tarnish the legacy of a still-beloved (though obviously problematic) character.
