Action icon Arnold Schwarzenegger is finally moving to the small screen for his first starring role in a TV series, signing on to star in and executive produce Amazon’s Western event series entitledOutrider. While Arnold Schwarzenegger did host NBC’sCelebrity Apprenticelast year, before quitting the series due to anti-Trump protests, thisOutriderseries will mark the first narrative TV series Arnold Schwarzenegger has ever starred in. The actor will also serve as an executive producer alongside Mace Neufeld, who produces Amazon’s upcomingJack Ryanseries starring John Krasinski.
Outrideris described as a mystery series set in the Oklahoma Indian Territory in the late 1800s. The story follows a young deputy who is presented with the task of bringing in a legendary outlaw who has been hiding out in the wilderness. A “notoriously brutal judge” has also paired the deputy with a “ruthless Federal Marshall,” to make sure that they get their man. As the story continues, “enemies will become allies” as a series of surprising events will “blur the line between good guys and bad.” Arnold Schwarzenegger will play the Federal Marshall, who immigrated to the U.S. from Europe as a child. This project may be an answer, of sorts, toNetflix’s Western seriesentitledGodless, which has been getting rave reviews since its debut in November, although it’s clear that both will be vastly different shows.
Theevent serieswill be co-written and co-created by Trey Callaway and Mark Montgomery, who will both serve as executive producers alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger and Mace Neufeld. Trey Callaway is coming off of recent stints as an executive producer and writer on shows such asAPBandRush Hour. He has also served as a writer and producer onThe Messengers,Revolution,Whodunit?,CSI: NY,W.I.T.C.H.andMercy Point. He also wrote the screenplay for the 1998 big screen thrillerI Know What You Did Last Summer.
This project is just the latest in Amazon Studio’s latest push for genre content, with this show marking their first Western series. The streaming service plunked down at least $5 million fr aSuper Bowl trailerfor their highly-anticipatedJack Ryanseries, and there have been reports that they will spend upwards of $1 billion for their highly-anticipatedLord of the Ringsseries. The streaming service is also developing aStarsky & Hutchreboot with James Gunn and his brothers Brian Gunn and Mark Gunn, along with another project that will be familiar to Arnold Schwarzenegger fans.
We reported yesterday thatAmazon is developing a new seriesbased on theConan the Barbarianstories, first created by Robert E. Howard. Arnold Schwarzenegger starred in the 1982 movie adaptation ofConan the Barbarian, and its 1984 sequelConan the Destroyer. There was also talk that the actor would return as the mighty Conan in the sequelLegend of Conan, although it isn’t clear when that project will start production.Deadlinebroke the news on theOutriderseries earlier today.
