Modern Family Star Is Rebooting a Classic '90s Sitcom for NBC - New Zealand News Beep

One of the most popular sitcoms of the 1990s is officially getting a reboot. This time, the plan is for Modern Family star Ty Burrell to lead the cast.

Deadline reports that NBC is moving forward with a reboot of Coach. Burrell is serving as an executive producer on the project and also has the “intention to star.” That would put him in a role similar to the one Craig T. Nelson played in the original series. The reboot will notably be a single-camera comedy, a deviation from the multi-cam format of the original sitcom that aired on ABC.

Ty Burrell Takes on Coach for NBC

Brothers Daniel Libman and Matthew Libman (Mr. Throwback) are developing the reboot with Davis Entertainment and Universal Television. The Libmans are also executive producing and writing the reboot, which centers on a legendary coach who “returns home to Minnesota to rebuild his alma mater’s basketball program and reconnect with his community.” It is unclear if the new show is set in the same universe as the original, or if it’s a complete reimagining.

Of course, Burrell is very experienced in the world of sitcoms. He memorably played Phil Dunphy across all 11 seasons of of Modern Family, a role that earned him two Emmy wins from eight consecutive nominations. The actor has not had an on-screen acting role since the end of Modern Family in 2020, though he recently joined the voice cast of the animated Fox series Duncanville. He also previously starred in the Fox sitcom Back to You.

Coach Ran for 200 Episodes and Nine Seasons

The original Coach series, which was created by Barry Kemp, ran for nine seasons on ABC from 1989 to 1997. Craig T. Nelson starred as Hayden Fox, the head coach of Minnesota State University’s Screaming Eagles football team. Shelley Fabares co-starred as Christine Armstrong, Hayden’s longtime girlfriend (and eventual wife) and a TV news anchor whose sophisticated lifestyle often clashes with Hayden’s sports-centric worldview. Jerry Van Dyke and Bill Fagerbakke also starred as Hayden’s clueless assistance coaches.

There were previous efforts to revive Coach with a sequel series at NBC. In 2015, the network ordered a 13-episode revival season developed by Kemp. It was set 18 years later and was set to focus on an older Hayden coming out of retirement to serve as assistant coach to his grown son’s team at an Ivy League school. Fagerbakke was also set to return as Dauber. However, NBC canceled the series after one episode was filmed, and it never aired.

Reviving 90s sitcoms has become a bit of a trend. Netflix just recently debuted a revival of A Different World, while other shows of the era to be revived in recent years include Frasier, That ’70s Show, and King of the Hill. The dramatic retelling of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air also has a new spinoff series in the works.