Corona | Coming Attractions

When CSI super-producer Jerry Bruckheimer sells a pilot to a network, it's news. When said pilot will be executive produced by the man formerly called The Rock, it's bigger news.

When said pilot is a drama set in the golden 1980s era of professional wrestling, the ghost of Randy "Macho Man" Savage smiles down from Heaven.

The untitled pilot was just sold to NBC/Universal and will have its script written by Spartacus: Gods of the Arena writers Brent Fletcher and Seamus Kevin Fahey. Both Bruckheimer and Dwayne Johnson (aka The Rock) are executive producers.

It's unlikely that this show will draw on the actual history of professional wrestling at that time. Back then, Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation (yup, the old school WWF acronym was in use back then) was emerging as a major player in pro wrasslin' thanks to an appearance by Hulk Hogan in Rocky III and a showing of Mr. T at the very first Wrestlemania. By the time 1985 came around the WWF was making periodic showings on NBC in the Saturday Night Live timeslot, selling magazines and pay-per-view showings to millions. There was even a Saturday morning cartoon featuring most of the popular WWF wrestlers of that era.

So without the involvement of the WWF/WWE, what's this wrestling show going to be about? Likely it will feature a WWF-like wrestling organization as it makes the transition from the minor leagues to mainstream pop culture sports entertainment. The wrestlers, both their private off-camera lives and their in-the-ring personas, will likely be the characters we'll see. And I hope to God that there will be a ton of 80s references.