Failed Sitcoms That Were Based on a Hit Movie

[Torgo]

Originally Posted by DJM77

Alice was based on Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore .

Also 'Mr. Belvedere' was based on Sitting Pretty (1948) with Clifton Webb as Mr Belvedere. The 1980's series was the 4th attempt to make Mr Belvedere into a series, there were 3 failed pilots in the past (One in 1956, one in 1959, and one in 1965)

[JamesG]

The more recent "Bad Teacher" (2014) was a dud. CBS canceled it after airing 3 eps.

Based on the 2011 film.

[Torgo]

Semi-Tough (1980) based on the 1977 Burt Reynolds movie.

[TJ]

Originally Posted by Torgo

Harry and the Hendersons - 1991-93

It ran for three seasons and 72 episodes. I would hardly call that a failure. It's more of a forgotten show.



A League of Their Own ran for five episodes (with one unaired episode) on CBS in 1993.

They made a Blazing Saddles spin-off sitcom that never aired. They allegedly filmed four seasons. The pilot episode of Black Bart was included as a bonus feature on the Blazing Saddles 30th Anniversary DVD and the Blu-ray disc. It aired on Trio in 2003.

BLACK BART (1975): Based on Mel Brooks’ Blazing Saddles, Louis Gossett, Jr. and Steve Landesberg star in this pilot that chronicles the adventures of a black sheriff and his quick-draw deputy working in a small, bigoted Arizona town in the Old West.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blazing_Saddles#TV_series

The weird IP story of the forgotten "Blazing Saddles" TV spin-off
https://boingboing.net/2021/03/25/th...-spin-off.html

Hats Off Entertainment did a video on it last year, but it looks like they made it private on their YouTube channel.

[MRPITT]

Sitcoms based on movies that failed
Working Girl
Gidget
Outsourced
Love Bug
Harper Valley PTA
9 to 5
Barber Shop
Bob & Carol And Ted & Alice
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
Party Girl
Gung Ho
Baby Boom

Lots of failed pilots based on sitcoms
Adventures in BabySitting
Turner and Hooch
Legally Blonde
Diner

Sitcoms that were in between success and failure
Private Benjamin
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir
Please Don’t Eat The Daisies

Sitcoms based on movies that were successful

Courtship Of Eddie’s Father
Honey I Shrunk The Kids
Flipper
Weird Science

[JamesG]

Originally Posted by DJM77

Uncle Buck (1990-1991)

The 2016 series also flopped.

[icecream]

Originally Posted by MRPITT

Sitcoms based on movies that were successful

Courtship Of Eddie’s Father
Honey I Shrunk The Kids
Flipper
Weird Science

You forgot the biggest success of all: M*A*S*H.

[jimpickens]

Not a sitcom but The Warriors movie had a failed series in 1980.

[TMC]

Originally Posted by MRPITT

Sitcoms based on movies that failed
Working Girl
Gidget
Outsourced
Love Bug
Harper Valley PTA
9 to 5
Barber Shop
Bob & Carol And Ted & Alice
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
Party Girl
Gung Ho
Baby Boom

Lots of failed pilots based on sitcoms
Adventures in BabySitting
Turner and Hooch
Legally Blonde
Diner

Sitcoms that were in between success and failure
Private Benjamin
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir
Please Don’t Eat The Daisies

Sitcoms based on movies that were successful

Courtship Of Eddie’s Father
Honey I Shrunk The Kids
Flipper
Weird Science

The pilot of Adventures in Babysitting is as far as I know, still on YouTube, albeit in poor quality. I'm kind of not surprised that it wasn't turned into a series. Adventures in Babysitting is a film that's pretty high stakes.

It's naturally hard to maintain that type of energy in a weekly, half hour sitcom. I mean, was every week, Chris Parker (the Elisabeth Shue character from the film) and her young charges, going to be thrown into madcap hijinks in the city, while the parents are out of the house?

The writers would have to contrive a new excuse and reasoning for why the plot for that week's episode becomes set into motion.

[TMC]

Originally Posted by DJM77

Based on movies of the same name unless otherwise noted.

Delta House (based on Animal House) (1979)
Uncle Buck (1990-1991)
Parenthood (1990-1991)
Working Girl (1990)
Baby Boom (1988-1989)
Baby Talk (based on Look Who's Talking) (1991-1992)
My Big Fat Greek Life (based on My Big Fat Greek Wedding) (2003)

I can immediately guess or tell why Delta House didn't work. Because it had to conform to the standards of prime-time network television of the day, a lot of the raunchy, irreverent, politically incorrect humor from the Animal House had to be toned down and sanitized.

[MRPITT]

Originally Posted by TMC

The pilot of Adventures in Babysitting is as far as I know, still on YouTube, albeit in poor quality. I'm kind of not surprised that it wasn't turned into a series. Adventures in Babysitting is a film that's pretty high stakes.

It's naturally hard to maintain that type of energy in a weekly, half hour sitcom. I mean, was every week, Chris Parker (the Elisabeth Shue character from the film) and her young charges, going to be thrown into madcap hijinks in the city, while the parents are out of the house?

The writers would have to contrive a new excuse and reasoning for why the plot for that week's episode becomes set into motion.

Yeah that would be a hard one. Maybe just a sequel instead of a show.

Originally Posted by icecream

You forgot the biggest success of all: M*A*S*H.

I think someone already mentioned it.

[Svenfan1234]

Originally Posted by MRPITT

Sitcoms based on movies that failed
Working Girl
Gidget
Outsourced
Love Bug
Harper Valley PTA
9 to 5
Barber Shop
Bob & Carol And Ted & Alice
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
Party Girl
Gung Ho
Baby Boom

Lots of failed pilots based on sitcoms
Adventures in BabySitting
Turner and Hooch
Legally Blonde
Diner

Sitcoms that were in between success and failure
Private Benjamin
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir
Please Don’t Eat The Daisies

Sitcoms based on movies that were successful

Courtship Of Eddie’s Father
Honey I Shrunk The Kids
Flipper
Weird Science

Alice was a successful sitcom based on the movie Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, lasting 9 seasons.

[Mace Dolex]

Originally Posted by TMC

The pilot of Adventures in Babysitting is as far as I know, still on YouTube, albeit in poor quality. I'm kind of not surprised that it wasn't turned into a series. Adventures in Babysitting is a film that's pretty high stakes.

It's naturally hard to maintain that type of energy in a weekly, half hour sitcom. I mean, was every week, Chris Parker (the Elisabeth Shue character from the film) and her young charges, going to be thrown into madcap hijinks in the city, while the parents are out of the house?

The writers would have to contrive a new excuse and reasoning for why the plot for that week's episode becomes set into motion.

The pilot is still on YouTube, I never knew this existed it has Joey Lawrence and Brian Austin Green before their voices cracked.

[MRPITT]

Originally Posted by Svenfan1234

Alice was a successful sitcom based on the movie Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, lasting 9 seasons.

Yes it was. I only listed ones that hadn’t been mentioned yet.

[TMC]

Originally Posted by Mace Dolex

The pilot is still on YouTube, I never knew this existed it has Joey Lawrence and Brian Austin Green before their voices cracked.

Incidentally, that same week in 1989, CBS aired another failed pilot for sitcom that was based on a relatively recent movie. On July 4, 1989, CBS broadcast a pilot for a proposed Coming to America TV series starring Tommy Davidson as the brother of Eddie Murphy's character Prince Akeem from the movie.