Keitel Makes First Weekly Television Appearance

The great film star, Harvey Keitel has just given the American adaptation of the popular British show “Life on Mars” a shot in the arm in may have needed to get viewers interested in the television fall project. He has signed on to star as Detective Gene Hunt, the boss of the homicide division. Hunt is a hard-as-nails cop not afraid to bend a few rules to get the job done. Keitel replaces fan-loved actor Colm Meaney who was originally cast as Hunt. Meaney had to leave his contract due to previous committments to four other film projects. Two just completed and the the other two getting underway the same time “Life On Mars” is shooting.

This will be Keitel’s first ever venture on to the small screen as a regular in at least 42 years since his long and successful acting career began. In his very early days of acting he did appear in episodes of “Hogan’s Heroes,” “Dark Shadows” and one stint on “Kojack” and for Steven Spielberg’s “Amazing Stories.” He also has done some work on HBO (”Head Above Water”), CBS (”Fail Safe”) and the ABC special “The Path to 9/11.” However, after his overwhelming success in the 1973 Martin Scorsese film, “Mean Streets,” Harvey’s career took him almost exclusively to the big screen where he has delighted audiences for years.

Keitel is best known for his roles as a gangster type in such land mark films as “Resevoir Dogs,” “Pulp Fiction” “Finding Graceland,” the dirty detective in “Cop Land,” and of course, the disenchanged preacher turned vampire-killer in Robert Rodriguez’ “From Dusk Till Dawn.”

ABC asked for a revamping of “Life on Mars” after execs viewed the pilot. Re-shooting begins August 5th with Keitel in place with series regulars Jason O’Mara, who stars as series lead Detective Sam Tyler, “The Sopranos” alum Michael Imperioli, who gets to play a cop this time around, and Jonathan Murphy who portrays Detective Chris Skelton.

For those not familiar with the British show from which this ABC series is adaptated, the story revolves around a 21st Century cop who is involved in a serious car crash and upon awakening, finds himself stuck in time 30 years in the past (1970’s). He takes up his role as a detective in this new environment, working for the NYPD and hot on the trail of the same serial killer he was investigating 30 years in the future. The only question for the audience and Tyler: Is everything that is taking place real or all an imaginary journey being taken during a comatose state inflicted as a result of the auto accident? The show will air this fall on ABC for 20th Century Fox.