Posted on: Thursday, November 11, 2004

'Baywatch' about to hit big screen

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

"Baywatch," the TV series that ran 12 seasons including two from Hawai'i, is about to become a feature film. DreamWorks has landed rights to do a big-screen version of the small-screen phenom, with plans to splash it onto movie screens — with Spandex swimsuits, of course — in the summer of 2006.

According to Variety.com, "Baywatch" has a seven-figure deal to produce the movie. Local film officials have not heard if any of the shooting would be done in Hawai'i — but they are hoping. A script has yet to be completed to mandate location shooting.

The original series, set in Los Angeles, first debuted on NBC but blossomed as an international favorite and a syndication gold mine, shown in 142 countries and translated into 44 languages.

The show made David Hasselhoff a household name (he starred from 1989-2000) and introduced audiences to a handful of hot bods, including Pamela Anderson, Carmen Electra and Yasmine Bleeth. The Hawai'i version, filmed here in 1999-2001, helped jump-start the TV careers of Brooke Burns and Jason Momoa, who now star on Fox's "North Shore."

It was not certain if any of the original regulars would make the transition to the big screen.

However, "Baywatch" creators Michael Berk, Doug Schwartz and Greg Bonann will produce the movie, with Michelle Berk as executive producer and Eli Roth as co-producer. The project is said to be one of the most aggressive deals for a TV show, in line with a deal Warner Bros. has made to expand "Hawaii Five-0" to a feature film.