CBS’ Early Edition Reboot Pilot Casts Alice Eve as the New Kyle Chandler
If Alice Eve didn’t already have a newspaper subscription, she does now! The Belgravia actress has been tapped to lead the pilot of CBS‘ gender-swapped Early Edition reboot, our sister site Deadline reports.
For the uninitiated, the original Early Edition starred a pre-Friday Night Lights Kyle Chandler as Gary Hobson, a man who mysteriously received each Chicago Sun-Times newspaper the day before it was published, and used the knowledge he received to prevent terrible events from taking place.
The new Early Edition hails from Hawaii Five-0 and Zoo scribe Melissa Glenn, and original series EPs DeVon Franklin and Bob Brush, and centers on “an ambitious but uncompromising journalist who starts receiving tomorrow’s newspaper today, [then] finds herself in the complicated business of changing the news instead of reporting it,” per the pilot’s official logline.
That “uncompromising journalist” happens to be Eve’s character, Beth, an executive producer at local Seattle TV news station KSEA. Journalism has been a passion of Beth’s since she was a little girl, and she’s “very focused on getting the story no matter what, which sometimes puts her at odds with her beloved mentor, Tommy, who believes that the most important thing about a story is the people and its human toll,” according to her official character description.
Additional series regulars include Jay Ali (Magnum P.I.) as Anthony, Beth’s news director; Charles Michael Davis (The Originals, Younger) as Derick, a cop-turned-soldier who now works as Beth’s “boyguard”; and Fiona Rene (I Know What You Did Last Summer) as Trina, Beth’s friend and a reporter at the station.
In addition to Belgravia, Eve’s small-screen credits include roles on Iron Fist, Entourage and Prime Video’s upcoming adaptation of Naomi Alderman’s novel The Power.
Do you see yourself subscribing to CBS’ new Early Edition? Drop a comment with your thoughts on the reboot below.
Staying with the future newspaper concept kind of already dates this reboot before it’s even started. I know paper newspapers haven’t completely disappeared, but it still feels out of place for a show made, and presumably set, in 2022. Feels like they should have updated the concept. Like how “God Friended Me” was already kind of a reboot of “Early Edition”, updated (somewhat) for the time it was set in.
Printed media does feel quaint, but I don’t think having her receive tomorrow’s online articles has the same inherent “magic.” (though for all we know, this may be their plan).
Not sure there’s a modern equivalent that would have quite the same dramatic impact, while also being practical for storytelling purposes.
Get the news on her phone. If they show the screen the impact is the same.
Not necessarily… the “early” information received drives the story… how she gets it doesn’t really date the story potential.
I don’t think she’s a very good actress. I have no interest in this show anyway though.
I thought she did very respectable work with the split personalities in Iron Fist season 2. Though I suppose it’s not hard to shine opposite the dry slice of white toast that is Finn Jones.
I liked her in Belgravia.
She’s great in ‘Some Velvet Morning.’
The resemblance is uncanny…
The way Kyle Chandler played the part, he was a great guy and low-key heroic — but also kind of grumpy and annoyed by the responsibility he was given and daily slog of saving people. I’m not sure this new character would be as interesting.
Kyle Chandler’s character “selected” her to receive the paper later on in life when she was a kid. As the story goes, that’s the same way it happened with him. A GenZ-er that has this printed “thing” turn up daily with a cat has some humor potential… online articles or texts could easily be dismissed as spam or misinformation.
…Do you know for sure that Alice Eve plays the same character, as an adult, in this show-which has only been reported as a REBOOT and NOT a revival?
In what world is she a gen Z?
Yeah, she would definitely qualify as an elder Millennial. She’s practically Gen X
The key difference with this new protagonist, which is potentially very clever, is that she is actively and professionally involved in reporting the news.
So instead of apathy, she’ll be tripped up by ambition: every story she prevents from happening is an amazing career opportunity that she is sacrificing.
I agree
Loved early edition very nervous about this.
Kinda surprised they don’t have her receiving push alerts so they can feel contemporary
Nope. Every week someone gets a brain wave and tries to re-invent the wheel. I’m fed up with reboots that change the gender, ethnicity, orientation etc. in hopes of trading on title recognition. Thank goodness for PBS and ACORN.
I agree
Weird, I thought they would have gone with the diversity angle. Guess not.
YES! Will watch.
Wouldn’t be the same without Kyle Chandler as Gary Hobson, I would not have watched it, and as it turns out, CBS changed their mind anyway.