FOX has tapped Stephen Amell to lead its planned Baywatch reboot, giving him the role of Hobie Buchannon and positioning the show for the 2026–27 broadcast season. The project already carries a 12-episode straight-to-series order and is expected to start filming this spring in Los Angeles, including shoots on Venice Beach and the Fox studio lot in Century City.
In the new take, Hobie grows up from the “wild child” viewers remember into a Baywatch captain working under the shadow of his father, Mitch Buchannon, the lifeguard leader played in the original by David Hasselhoff. The reboot’s first big family beat comes when Hobie learns he has a daughter he never knew, Charlie, who wants to join the team—setting up a push-and-pull between duty, ego, and the job’s daily risks.
Matt Nix will run the series and executive produce alongside original creators Michael Berk, Greg Bonann and Doug Schwartz, plus Dante Di Loreto and others. McG is set to direct the premiere and executive produce, continuing his long relationship with the network.
Fox and Fremantle are selling the reboot as a reset that keeps the franchise’s staples—rescues, messy relationships, and beachside heroics—while swapping in a new cast and current-day tensions. Fox entertainment chief Michael Thorn said the plan is to bring “fresh stories” and “rising stars” to a new generation, while Fremantle drama chief Christian Vesper described the show as one of the company’s signature properties. The move leans on a brand with a proven global footprint: Guinness World Records has credited the original Baywatch with an estimated weekly audience of more than 1.1 billion at its peak.
