In a revival of the classic sitcom that ran from 1994 to 2004, Kelsey Grammer will reprise his iconic role as Dr. Frasier Crane.
When ViacomCBS officially unveiled its upcoming streaming platform Paramount+ on February 24, 2021, news of the Frasier revival broke.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, How I Met Your Mother’s Chris Harris and Life in Pieces’ Joe Cristalli has signed on to write new episodes for the revival, which is being produced by Grammer’s Grammnet Productions alongside CBS Studios.
Along with Grammer, Jordan McMahon, and Tom Russo, the two writers will serve as executive producers. In a statement, CBS Studios President David Stapf teased that the series has a “brilliant creative plan” that the studio is eager to show audiences.
“Frasier is one of the most popular comedies on television today, and it epitomizes premium storytelling.
Fans have been clamoring for it to come back for a long time, and now it has, thanks to the incredible Kelsey Grammer reprising his iconic role as Dr. Frasier Crane and a brilliant creative plan from Joe, Chris, and Kelsey “Stapf stated. “We’re looking forward to revealing the next chapter on Paramount+.”
So, we know that Grammer is returning, and there’s been a lot of talk about Paramount+, but what about the numbers? When will the revival of Frasier be released? Who will join Grammer in the cast of the revival?
And where can you find out more about the new series? As of this writing, concrete details are scarce, but let’s make some educated guesses as we go over everything we know so far about the Frasier revival.
When Do You Think the Frasier Reboot Will Be Released?
The Frasier revival has no firm release date as of this writing (late February 2021) because ViacomCBS hasn’t declared one. That’s to be anticipated, given that the project’s existence was only recently made public.
However, it isn’t all bad news: some forecasting may be done to predict when audiences will be able to “hear the blues a-calling” once more.
Television shows can have any number of episodes – Black Mirror’s most recent season was only three episodes long – and primetime shows can have anything from 12 to 24 or more episodes per season, therefore production time varies.
Perhaps a show must film in batches, broadcasting parts A and B of a season with a mid-season finale in between, and feels only comfortable launching a new season after a specific amount of new episodes have been shot.
To account for shooting and editing time, the release date could be pushed back by as much as a few months. Because the episode count is lower on other projects, the principal photography phase of production is shorter, and hence the release date for a season occurs not long after the new episodes are revealed.
There are two reasons at play in the Frasier revival: Because it’s a reboot, there won’t be many episodes to film, and it’ll be a streaming original (more on that later), it’s possible that all of the episodes will need to be completed before it can air.
If we assume that filming will begin in a few months after the project’s team has all of its ducks in a row and that the reboot will consist of eight to ten episodes (as opposed to the 24 episodes per season that Frasier had during its original run), we can expect the reboot to wrap in late 2021 at the earliest.
That puts the release date somewhere on the 10 AUGUST 2022 – at the very latest. It’s possible that the Frasier remake may begin production in 2022 and premiere in 2023. Anything can happen at any time.
Of course, none of this should be taken as gospel until ViacomCBS and/or the Frasier revival team make an official announcement about the release date.
Who Will Be on the Frasier Comeback Cast?
Grammer — who brilliantly portrayed psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane navigating his new bachelor life in Seattle, hosting his own talk-radio psychiatry show and developing a friendship with his polar-opposite producer, taking care of his father, competing with his brother (a fellow psychiatrist), and bonding with his father’s live-in caretaker, whom his brother is in love with — is the only original Frasier cast member confirmed to appear in the revival as of February 24, 2021, It’s safe to assume that all but one of Frasier’s four other primary characters will appear in the revival and that their original performers will reprise their roles.
Peri Gilpin could return as Roz Doyle, the producer of The Dr. Frasier Crane Show, who is opinionated, confident, and humorous, and has a voice that many of Frasier’s listeners mock. Frasier’s neurotic, snobbish, germaphobic brother Niles might be played by David Hyde Pierce again.
Jane Leeves will reprise her role as Daphne Moon, the kindhearted, eccentric English physiotherapist who looks after the Cranes’ father and eventually marries and has a kid with Niles, provided all goes according to plan.
Only John Mahoney, who played Martin Crane in Frasier, will be unable to reprise his role in the revival. Martin is Frasier and Niles’ father, and he worked as a Seattle police investigator until he was forced to retire due to a gunshot wound. Mahoney passed away in February 2018 at the age of 77 (according to Variety).
Official word on Gilpin, Pierce, and Leeves’ prospective involvement with the Frasier reboot will have to wait. Regardless of who joins the revival or not, one thing is certain: Grammer is looking forward to reprising his role as Frasier Crane.
“I’d like to congratulate Paramount+ on its debut into the streaming world, having spent over 20 years of my creative life on the Paramount lot, both producing shows and performing in several,” he said in a statement (via Deadline). “I’m looking forward to sharing the next chapter in Dr. Frasier Crane’s continued adventure.”
How to see the NBC remake of Fraiser
This one is simple: The relaunch of Frasier will be available to view on Paramount+, the streaming service that will eventually be known as CBS All Access.
The formal rebranding will take place on March 4, 2021, and will be followed by expansion into other foreign countries. According to The Verge, CBS All Access will transition to Paramount+ in Latin America on March 4, and in the Nordic countries on March 25, followed by Australia in mid-2021.
According to CNN, CBS All Access has about 30 million global members, with 19 million of those in the United States. By the year 2024, the firm hopes to have between 60 and 75 million members, and promoting fresh content like the Frasier resurrection is a great way to attract new clients.
A seven-day free trial is available to anyone interested in subscribing to CBS All Access before it becomes Paramount+. If you like what the platform has to offer and wish to stay for the future, you may renew your subscription for $5.99 USD per month for a limited-commercial option or $9.99 USD per month for a commercial-free plan.
Annual subscriptions are likewise divided into two categories: those with commercials cost $59.99 USD, and those without are $99.99 USD. According to CNN, the commercials-included package will be reduced to $4.99 USD per month in June 2021. There’s no indication yet on whether the annual plans’ prices will change.
on The Late, Late Show, Grammer informed James Corden.