L.A. streets will feel a little safer, virtually, with LAPD-style Officers ‘Baker’ and ‘Poncharello’ returning to the streets, in the theatrical send-up of the television show, “CHiPS”. The 70’s-style good cops vs. bad guys crime opera aired on NBC and became a pop culture phenomenon among other programs (“Battlestar Galactica” and “The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Mysteries”, airing on ABC). The former sci-fi show had a short feature run in theaters, yet the cop duo endeared itself to fans. The soap-style cop adventure returns with a Hollywood treatment to hit theaters and a spanking new movie trailer to boot.
'CHiPS' 70’s Reel
The "CHiPS" reel premiered on “Jimmy Kimmel Live”, January 11, 2017, reintroducing the characters Jon Baker and Frank Poncharello (“Ponch”, to his comrades) first played by Larry Wilcox and Erik Estrada. Now revamped for the big screen and played by Dax Shepard and Michael Peña.
Watch the trailer:
Dax Shepard penned the feature adaptation and held the director’s chair to reintroduce Baker and Ponch as recruits enrolling into the California Highway Patrol. Baker plays an X-Games biker retiree who enters the CHP in attempt to resuscitate a failing marriage (to his spouse, played by Kristen Bell, Shepard’s wife in real life). Ponch follows a lead revolving around an unsolved heist and is a federal agent working under the radar.
Shepard’s interpretation to the media was the latest version of the cop series, “is definitely a comedy, where the show is not”. The aim was to split the difference someplace between “Lethal Weapon” and “Bad Boys”, explained Shepard. Where the “stakes” and the physics of the officers’ environment are grounded. “It’s a very real world” where “insane situations happen”.
Fans ‘Reel’
Fans of the original show regaled the best-buddy relationship between Ponch and Jon as the catalyst for one-upmanship between friends. TV episodes that depicted Ponch or Jon charming a respective female date from the other helped to evolve the show’s comedic element. The heart-pounding drama amplified the backdrop for their friendship that became a familiar thread to fans and strengthened the viewer-series relationship across high octane plot lines.
The feature adaptation of the pop culture series is slated to lens March, 24th on U.S. screens nationwide.
The movie poster tagline: “Chips Happens”.
