David Hyde Pierce's Niles probably won't appear in the in-development Frasier reboot. After his stint in Boston chronicled in Cheers, Frasier Crane moved back to Seattle to start a new life. This allowed fans to meet his equally interesting family - including his father, Martin Crane (John Mahoney), and younger brother, Niles.
Running for 11 brilliant seasons, Frasier is one of the rare spin-offs whose success rivaled its parent show. While the NBC sitcom primarily revolved around the titular character, its ensemble cast was what really made it the iconic sitcom that it became. Each main character was given their respective arcs, including Niles, who's described as what his brother would've been if he wasn't exposed to the down-to-earth people he mingled with every day at Cheers. Niles was typically in cahoots with Frasier for his various shenanigans, but the character also stood out on his own thanks to his odd sense of humor and quirky ways, not to mention his hopeless adoration of Daphne (Jane Leeves), Marty's home carer.
News of a Frasier revival has been going around for a couple of years now with Grammer working to get it off the ground. No significant update has been said about it until the actor shared that after years of cracking a potential storyline, they've finally figured out how they can bring the Cranes back on TV. Peri Gilpin, who played Roz, appears to be on-board the project, confirming that the reboot is still in the works back in April. While Leeves has yet to confirm that she'll appear Pierce has been clear about his thoughts on a Frasier reboot: he won't do it.
Back in 2017, when there were still no talks about a Frasier reboot, Pierce talked to Vulture about his career in Hollywood that spanned decades — and obviously, the conversation couldn't end without recalling his time playing Niles Crane. At this point, reboots and revivals of classic TV shows were already on the rise with Netflix picking up Full House's spin-off sequel Fuller House and NBC greenlighting Will & Grace's ninth season. This prompted the outlet to ask the actor if he would be involved in a potential Frasier revival, and based on his straightforward answer of "No," he wasn't interested. For what it's worth, he added that he didn't think people wanted a reboot anyway. Since then, Pierce has not commented again on the possible Frasier revival - even when it was brought up recently during a reunion.
Aside from Pierce's personal thoughts on a Frasier reboot, plot details for the show that has been released thus far suggest that the show will be set in an entirely different city, with the titular character finding a brand new love. If this actually becomes the primary narrative of the show, that means that there's no need for Niles and Daphne - or frankly, other characters from Seattle to be involved outside of the gratuitous cameo. It's important to note, however, that this isn't confirmed; the information was merely floated by Grammer during one of the times he talked about the potential Frasier return on the small screen.
While Frasier is named after the Cheers character, fans know that the show's appeal truly lies in the fantastic chemistry among its cast. So, the idea that the show might return without Niles is disappointing, considering that he's also a lead character himself in the sitcom in every sense of the word. He was so good playing Niles Crane that he was nominated 11 times for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for the Primetime Emmys, meaning his performance was acknowledged every year of the show's run, winning four of them. Hopefully if the revival does happen, he'll be convinced to change his mind.