David Hasselhoff is going meta for his next project. The Baywatch and Knight Rider favorite has signed on to star in Ze Network, a German TV series following Hasselhoff as a fictionalized version of himself. A dark comedy, the series picks up the Hoff getting cast in a theater play in Germany “only to be caught up in an international conspiracy of former Cold War assassins.”
The Hoff won’t be alone in Ze Network, as the series co-stars German actor Henry Hübchen (Go for Zucker!) also playing a fictionalized version of himself – a “famous Eastern German actor who might also be an international spy.” Christian Alvart (Dogs of Berlin) will direct and Sigi Kamml, Alvart, and Timm Oberwelland will produce.
Ze Network is the first project under CBS Studios’ new first-look international TV agreement with the Berlin company Syrreal Entertainment, headed by Alvart and Kamml. The show will premiere on the German subscription video platform TV Now, which is run by RTL Group. Hasselhoff’s relationship with RTL dates back many years as Knight Rider had been a huge hit for the network.
“Knight Rider was incredibly successful for both me and RTL. Returning now 30 years later to do a cutting-edge series and working with RTL again is a dream come true,” Hasselhoff said in a statement. “The series is funny, deadly, creative, and informative … simply exciting. Fact or fiction, you decide.”
Alvart added: “I can’t wait to share with audiences the crazy ride Mr. Hasselhoff will be bravely taking on with Ze Germans.”
The success of Knight Rider in Germany also helped launch the Hoff as a megastar in the European country. Based on this popularity, David Hasselhoff would a successful pop music career in Germany, and while the career move was unexpected, it made the Hoff an even bigger star. Following the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, Hasselhoff released the album Looking for Freedom which went triple platinum in Europe. Its lead single of the same name reached number one in Germany for eight straight weeks.
Widely known as one of the most popular heartthrobs of the 1980s, Hasselhoff is famous for his roles in Baywatch and Knight Rider. Many times playing himself, he has also appeared in several movies including Dodgeball, The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, and Click. In addition to his acting career, Hasselhoff is also known for working as a talent show judge on both American and European television, as served as a judge on America’s Got Talent and Britain’s Got Talent.
Hasselhoff’s new series isn’t the only upcoming meta project to see a real-life actor playing himself as an action hero. Nicolas Cage is currently working on the action-comedy The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, which will see the Face/Off star taking on a notorious drug lord in Mexico. Last year, comedian Kevin Hart also played himself in the short-form action-comedy series Die Hart, following the Jumanji actor on his quest to become the ultimate action movie star.
Ze Network is scheduled to start filming in July. This news comes to us from The Hollywood Reporter.
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