Quibi develops reboot of Warner Bros movie ‘The Fugitive’

Soon-to-launch short-form video platform Quibi is developing a reboot of Warner Bros’ 1993 movie The Fugitive, written by Scorpion creator Nick Santora.

The show is from US trio Thunder Road Films, 3 Arts Entertainment and Warner Bros. TV, which was behind the Harrison Ford-fronted movie that won an Academy Award for Best Picture.

The story follows a worker who tries to save his wife and daughter from a suspected terrorist attack but inadvertently becomes the main suspect, forcing him into a deadly game of evasion from the law.

Thunder Road’s Basil Iwanyk plus 3 Arts duo Tom Lassally and Albert Torres exec produce alongside Santora, who is already working with Quibi on a drama starring Hunger Games’ Liam Hemsworth.

It has been a busy month for the Jeffrey Katzenberg-founded streamer, which has ordered natural history show Fierce Queens as well as a horror show from Steven Spielberg over the past four weeks.

Yesterday BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the UK public broadcaster, became the latest company to invest in Quibi joining the likes of Disney, NBCUniversal, WarnerMedia, Lionsgate, the UK’s ITV, Liberty Global and China’s Alibaba.

Former Dreamworks exec Katzenberg and Quibi CEO Meg Whitman revealed earlier this year that the service’s content will consist of two to two-and-a-half hour stories presented in 15 chapters of 7-10 minutes each, and budgeted at around $6m an hour.

Talent including Idris Elba, Don Cheadle, Tyra Banks and Jennifer Lopez have already been attached to projects for the service, which is set to launch on 6 April in North America ahead of a global roll out. It will be priced at $4.99 with short ads, or $7.99 without them, and has been designed primarily for mobile users.