Till, left, and Anderson as MacGyver Courtesy APA; Photofest
Lucas Till will take on the character originally made famous by Richard Dean Anderson.
Following a lengthy and extensive casting search, CBS has found its new MacGyver.
X-Men alum Lucas Till has been tapped to take on the character that was originally made famous by Richard Dean Anderson, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. Additionally, Joshua Boone has joined the drama pilot as a series regular.
CBS' MacGyver is described as a reimagining of the television series of the same name. It follows a 20-something MacGyver (Till) as he gets recruited into a clandestine organization where he uses his knack for solving problems in unconventional ways to help prevent disasters from happening.
Till recently wrapped X-Men: Apocalypse, where he plays mutant Havok. He's also set as the lead in Paramount's Monster Trucks. The actor, who was born into a military family and raised by his father (a lieutenant colonel and aviation task force commander in the Army, he started his career on the set of Walk the Line. He's repped by APA, manager Tom Sullivan and Hirsch Wallerstein.
The casting caps a weeks-long search by CBS that was compounded by the fact that the network picked up the pilot without a script after opting to go with a new pitch from a different writer who was initially attached to the project when it was put in development.
Originally written by R. Scott Gemmill (NCIS: LA), the new take hails from scribe Paul Downs Colaizzo (CBS pilot LFE from last season). Henry Winkler, who executive produced the original series, is on board to serve in the same capacity alongside James Wan's Atomic Monster head of production Michael Clear. Wan (Aquaman, Mortal Kombat, Saw) will exec produce and segue into TV with the project.
The reboot landed at CBS in October with what sources say was a hefty put-pilot commitment. The drama, produced in-house at CBS Television Studios, comes as insiders say executives at the studio are high on bringing back a title from their library. David Von Ancken will direct the pilot and exec produce alongside original MacGyver creator Lee Zlotoff.
Boone, meanwhile, will take on the role of Gunner, MacGyver's best friend from high school. He's repped by Abrams.
Till and Boone join a cast that also includes CSI grad George Eads.
Keep up with all the latest pickups, castings and eventual series orders with THR's handy guide to pilot season.
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