9 TV Shows That Tried To Exploit Nostalgia (And Failed)

4. Knight Rider (2008)

Knight Rider Reboot
NBC

You don't get much more 80s than Knight Rider, a TV show about a crime-fighter (played by The Hoff, because of course) whose sidekick just happens to be a super-powered car that can talk. It was daft, obviously, but it endured, living on for decades across TV, TV movies, and video games.

It was just a matter of time before it was brought back to the small screen, and NBC tried to get in on the action in 2008, modernising the format with the son of The Hoff's character taking over the lead.

This was before the big 80s nostalgia boom of the 2010s though, so the update found itself in a rather precarious position. At the time, seriousness and grittiness was in, but the show still had to appeal to fans of the wacky original, and thus found itself simultaneously trying to tackle adult themes while still indulging in the sci-fi shenanigans.

To put it another way, it was at once trying to appeal to the nostalgia of fans, while also being a little ashamed of the property it was based on.

It was a total disaster, and was swiftly cancelled after one season.

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Josh has over 11 years of experience as a published writer, having worked nine of those years as a full-time content producer at WhatCulture. In that period he has created hundreds of articles, videos and podcast episodes for multiple WhatCulture channels, specialising in gaming, horror and film & TV. He now primarily works as a senior content producer and presenter on WhatCulture Gaming where he co-hosts the WhatCulture Gaming Podcast, a top 3 UK most listened to gaming podcast that he co-created in 2018. Over the years he has reviewed several high-profile gaming releases, covered industry events with on-site reporting, opined on breaking news, and even kicked off his interviewing career by chatting to childhood hero, Tommy Wiseau.