Both Friends and ALF receive gritty reimaginings in the form of parody trailers inspired by the upcoming Fresh Prince of Bel-Air reboot. A new take on the classic Will Smith sitcom, Bel-Air seems poised to explore the familiar story from a much more grounded perspective. Smith will produce the series, which is set to release on Peacock on February 13.
While the original Fresh Prince of Bel-Air leaned heavily into comedy, its revamp is looking to be a much more somber, dramatic affair. The first series, which ran for six seasons on NBC from 1990-1996, would occasionally explore uncharacteristically heavy themes and storylines, but for the most part, Fresh Prince was a traditional sitcom. This new series, however, while still telling the same tale of a Philadelphia teenager unwillingly relocated to the swanky neighborhood of Bel-Air, will give viewers reimagined versions of classic Fresh Prince characters while exploring the story through a whole new lens. But it turns out Fresh Prince isn't the only beloved NBC sitcom that could do well with a darker makeover.
A segment on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert offered two different classic NBC series that are begging for brooding reboots: Friends and ALF. In a satirical bit inspired by Bel-Air, the late-night show gave viewers trailers for dark reimaginings of both classic sitcoms. ALF's revival is intercut with scenes from Ridley Scott's Alien, portraying the affable alien life form as a deadly Xenomorph. Friends, on the other hand, is twisted into what seems to be more of an erotic thriller, spliced together with scenes from Eyes Wide Shut. Check out the video below:
Though the segment was obviously made in jest, a mature reboot of a series like ALF may not be as out of the question as it initially seems. Recent years have seen dark reimaginings of properties like Archie and Sabrina the Teenage Witch, both of which have proven successful. It stands to reason that a more mature take on a character like ALF could find an audience. The tonal shift a property sees when being reworked into a different genre can always be jarring, but recent projects have proven that it's not at all impossible to pull off.
Audiences will have to wait to see if Bel-Air is able to navigate the comedy-to-drama transition. If so, it will continue the trend of childhood-favorite properties being given new life for older audiences that grew up with the characters. And if Bel-Air's gritty reboot does prove to be a success, ALF and Friends already have their trailers ready to follow suit.