The Six Million Dollar Man

Genre: Action/Science Fiction.

Studio: Universal Pictures.
Production Company: Unknown.

Project Phase: Development Hell.

Who's In It: Unknown. Richard Anderson may return as Oscar Goldman.
Who's Making It: John Pogue ?Kevin Smith? Joss Whedon? (Screenwriter); based upon the 1970's television series The Six Million Dollar Man [which was based upon the novel Cyborg by Martin Caiden - we do our homework, y'know].

Premise: A man is given artificial bionic limbs, heightening his normal human abilities.

Release Date: Unknown.

Comments: Steve Austin, astronaut. A man barely alive. "Gentlemen, we can re-build him. We have the technology." Now, Steve Austin is the world's first bionic human being. He is - (insert bionic sound effect here) CH-CH-CH-CH-SHHHHH - the Six Million Dollar Man!

Sure, it was cheesy Seventies action-adventure - but who out there didn't get a kick out of looking through action figure Steve's bionic eye? We know you exist!

And it looks like Kevin Smith (the director of Clerks, Chasing Amy) may have belonged to the Steve Austin Fan Club, too. Smith is working on a screenplay treatment for the property. No word if the Bionic Woman, Max the Bionic Dog, Oscar Goldman, Rudy or even the Bionic Bigfoot - yes, that was an actual character from the TV show - will make an appearance. We're not even sure if the main character will be Steve Austin.

Rumors: Unknown.

Scoop Feedback:

May 9, 1996... Kevin Smith's screenplay is, surprisingly enough, not going to feature any of the more campy elements from the television series. Universal wants to play the project dead straight - which means no Bigfoot character. Chances are slim that Smith will get the directing chores after the luke-warm Mallrats grosses. [Scoop submitted by OSI operative 'Pavlov' - we're not sure which part of him is bionic.]

June 24, 1996... At the Electronic Entertainment Expo last year (May 1995), this scooper ran into Richard Anderson (Oscar Goldman from the original series) who was pitching two projects. The first was an interest in an Internet casino, and the second was a big budget screen version of thh Six Million Dollar Man series which he said he was executive producing. [Scoop info sent in by 'TonyPR', bionic scoop informant.]

July 9, 1996... We've been told the movie is in pre-production at Universal with Richard Anderson (Oscar Goldman) serving as executive producer. Expected release date is sometime in 1998. [Scoop info submitted by Doug Sanders; forwarded by Richard Anderson.]

August 8, 1996... This fellow reports that at the San Diego Comic Con, Kevin Smith announced that he is not interested in directing it, and was never offered the job. Smith also told fans that he tried to convince the producers to change the title to the 'Bionic Man' because he didn't think that $6 million dollars would impress anyone anymore. However, the producers insisted the title stay the same, so Smith says he came up with an interesting way to work around this monetary limitation (but he didn't reveal it.) [Bionic scoop supplied by 'eson'.]

October 6, 1996... Mike Sauter, IN Jersey entertainment writer and WHTG-FM 106.3's morning show host, sent us a great scoop of his interview with Scott Mosier and Kevin Smith for the IN Jersey site:

Mike: Speaking of TV shows, Kevin, did I hear right? Are you doing something related to The Six Million Dollar Man? Kevin: Uh-huh, I'm writing the script. Mike: Is this going to be the big kind of Brady Bunch-esque, Mission: Impossible treatment? Kevin: It's actually not played for laughs, it's kind of serious. Yeah, it's close to Mission: Impossible in theme and tone. Revamped, but more faithful to the show. Mike: Is it going to be just about Steve Austin, or will it also have Jaime Sommers? Kevin: Jaime's in it. Mike: How about Steve Austin's seven million dollar man rival? Kevin: What? Mike: I remember some storyline in the series about him finding out that there was another bionic man who was actually slightly more high-tech than him. And they had some big showdown at the end. Kevin: That's kind of the plotline of the movie. Mike: Really? Kevin: Yeah. Mike: Well, that sounds pretty cool. Hopefully, they'll bring back those Six Million Dollar Man action figures, with the little bionic eye you could look through. Kevin: Oh, I've got a couple. They send them to you as gifts. [Scoop furnished by the bionic Mike Sauter. The complete interview can be found at: ' http://www.injersey.com/Entertainment/Movies/Jersey/smith-mosier.html'.]

October 20, 1996... Kevin Smith is no longer involved with the project, due to a shakeup with Universal execs and the developers of the film. with it), his script is basically being tossed out. Richard Anderson may also be out of the project. The scooper also mentions that in the Smith script, Steve Austin wasn't the original Six Million Dollar Man. [Scoop furnished by 'imho'.]

January 12, 1997... This fellow reports to us that screenwriter Joss Whedon (Speed, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the upcoming Alien Resurrection) has been hired to write a new script for the project. [Scoop sent in by Doug Sanders.]

May 25, 1997... The Six Million Dollar Man film will be released in the winter of 1998, or so we're told by this scooper. According to the scooper, Richard Anderson is still involved as executive producer, and will also reprise his role as Oscar Goldman. Joss Whedon has been hired to write the script. The film's title will simply be Bionics. All of this information is said to have come from Richard Anderson himself. [Scoop sent in 'redrain'.]

October 21, 1997... Are you a fans of the series? Worried about the lack of progress this film seems to be stuck in? Then you better click back before your eyes get a chance to read this anonymous scoop... " This project is dead. No activity at the studio. The few executives who wanted to make it are long since gone...." [Received anonymously.]

May 19, 1998... John Pogue, the screenwriter of U.S. Marshals, is apparently doing a rewrite right now. According to our scooper, the script is now entitled 'The 6 Billion Dollar Man'. [Anonymous.]



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