Academy Award winner Octavia Spencer is reportedly in talks to take on the lead in a planned reboot of the classic TV series Murder, She Wrote.
Spencer, who is currently generating Oscar buzz for her supporting role in the acclaimed film Fruitvale Station, would play an amateur sleuth (and hospital administrator) similar to Jessica Fletcher, a mystery writer who stumbled upon and solved murders for 12 years on CBS.
The new series, which is being developed for NBC, will be more in the vein of Fox’s hit show Bones and the movie Fargo, according to Deadline.com.
Alexandra Cunningham, who served as an executive producer on Desperate Housewives, will be running the show along with producer David Jallonari.
“Octavia and I are both huge true crime buffs, amateur criminologists, and fans of Angela Lansbury,” said Spencer. “To get the chance to re-imagine Murder, She Wrote for a dynamic and multi-faceted actress like Octavia is a thrill and a pleasure.”
This would be Spencer’s first time anchoring a series on the small screen.
“I’ve always considered myself an armchair detective and in a recent meeting with Bob Greenblatt, he asked me what type of character would be able to lure me to TV. Naturally, I said J.B. Fletcher meets Colombo… And here we are,” she said.
Lansbury may reprise her most famous role in the reboot as well.
“I’m ecstatic to have the opportunity to work with Dave Janollari again, and Alex Cunningham a brilliant writer who shares my love for all things mysterious and Angela Lansbury,” said Spencer.
The Help actress is about the begin production on the James Brown biopic Get On Up and has also penned a novel for young adults: Randi Rhodes, Ninja Detective: The Case of the Time-Capsule Bandit.