Seventeen years after its series finale in 2004, “Frasier” is now officially getting a revival series on Paramount+. During ViacomCBS’s Investor Day meeting, the announcement was made that Kelsey Grammer will return to star as Dr. Frasier Crane, and also serve as an executive producer for the series, much as he did for the show’s original run.
Further casting details have yet to emerge, but Variety reports that Chris Harris and Joe Cristalli will be writing for the series, in addition to being executive producers. Cristalli previously worked on late-night show “Conan” in addition to the Tim Allen sitcom “Last Man Standing.” Harris meanwhile has lent his talents to “How I Met Your Mother,” where Cristalli also worked as an assistant to the writers.
Rumors of this project have been around for the last several years but nothing concrete has been announced until today. As such, plot details are sketchy. Kelsey has previous stated that the proposed revival would not take place in the previous setting of Seattle and would have to feature previous cast members.
Regarding said cast, sadly, John Mahoney who played Frasier’s father Martin Crane, passed away in 2018. The rest of the major cast, David Hyde-Pierce as Frasier’s brother Niles Crane, Peri Gilpin as radio producer Roz Doyle, and Jane Leeves as Martin’s physical therapist and Niles’ love interest, Daphne Moon are all fortunately still with us.
Though it may not be seen this way today, when other sitcoms like “Friends” and “The Office” are more often talked about, “Frasier” was one of the most critically lauded and commercially successful sitcoms in American television history. Frasier’s character originated in the third season of “Cheers” in 1984. Originally supposed to be a limited-time character to compete with Sam Malone for the affections of Diane Chambers, Kelsey’s performance won over the audience and writers to the point where he became a permanent addition to the cast.
Following the final and 11th season of “Cheers” in 1993, the character of Frasier Crane was moved into his self-titled spin-off, which also lasted for 11 seasons. Worth noting is how the series won 5 consecutive Emmy awards for Outstanding Comedy Series, a feat only rivaled by “Modern Family” which performed the same achievement. Incidentally, both of those series involved the work of writer Christopher Lloyd with the latter being created by him as well.
Kelsey’s track record on television following “Frasier” has been sadly lackluster. Two sitcoms, “Back To You” and “Hank” were canceled after one season. And though Grammer did score a Golden Globe award for best actor in a drama for his performance in “Boss,” that was canceled by Starz after two seasons and an unresolved storyline. Here’s hoping that his return to the character that he’s embodied for over 20 years will bring him some renewed success, and “Frasier” fans some continued laughter.
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