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Head of the Class is back in session.
HBO Max is teaming with prolific producer Bill Lawrence (Scrubs) to reboot the former ABC comedy about a group of overachieving high school students who meet their match in a teacher who wants them to focus less on grades and more on life.
WarnerMedia’s forthcoming streaming service has picked up the new Head of the Class to pilot and ordered five additional scripts. Amy Pocha and Seth Cohen (Netflix’s American Vandal) will co-write the pilot and serve as co-showrunners alongside Scrubs grads Steven Cragg and Brian Bradley. Lawrence and his Doozer Productions banner topper Jeff Ingold will executive produce alongside Pocha, Cohen, Cragg and Bradley. Doozer’s Liza Katzer will serve as a co-EP.
The half-hour multicamera — which is being produced to target kids and families — is being produced by Warner Horizon Scripted TV, a division of Warner Bros. TV and where Lawrence’s Doozer banner is based under a rich overall deal.
Head of the Class was created by Rich Eustis and Michael Elias and ran for five seasons from 1986-1991 on ABC. Warner Bros. TV produced the original series. (Key to rebooting anything is having the rights to the IP.) Howard Hesseman starred as Charlie Moore, a dedicated history teacher who pushed a group of students that included Dan Frischman (the nerd), Dan Schneider (the chubby smartass), Tony O’Dell (the conservative preppy kid), Robin Givens (the spoiled rich kid) and Kimberly Russell (the humble smart girl), among others.
Head of the Class becomes the latest Warners-owned IP to be updated for HBO Max, joining a list that includes Gossip Girl, Dune and Gremlins. The streamer also has a Practical Magic prequel in the works as a pilot.
Lawrence’s credits include Whiskey Cavalier, the Rush Hour TV reboot, Undateable, Cougar Town, Scrubs and Spin City. Pocha and Cohen won a Peabody for their work on American Vandal and previously worked with Lawrence on Whiskey Cavalier and Undateable.
Watch the pilot for the original Head of the Class, below.
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