David Hasselhoff has confirmed that he will be joining the cast of Baywatch for a film remake of the cult TV series.
The Hoff – who saw his profile rise after starring in hit TV series Knight Rider in the ’80s and Baywatch in the ’90s – was yesterday (March 2) confirmed to join the cast of the film remake, directed by Dwayne Johnson (otherwise known as wrestling character The Rock) and also starring Zac Efron, Priyanka Chopra, Alexandra Daddario, and Hannibal Buress.
Johnson announced via social media, calling Hoff ‘the original Baywatch gangsta’, according to Vulture. His role in the reboot – which is being given an R-rating and described as “Avengers-meets-Anchorman” – is still unclear.
“[Hoff]’s been training his ass off and gotten in the best shape he’s been in in years!” Johnson wrote in his posts. “Cue slo-mo running and glistening chest hair .. wait, why the f*ck am I even thinking about Hoff’s chest hair!?”
"I WAS BORN READY!" Pleasure to officially welcome the original #BAYWATCH gangsta himself David… https://t.co/w73KEv2Ud0
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) March 3, 2016
Meanwhile, model Kelly Rohrbach has been cast as CJ Parker, Pamela Anderson’s Baywatch character.
The movie – which will star and be co-produced by Dwayne Johnson (The Rock) and also features Zac Efron – hasn’t impressed Anderson herself, who recently said of the project “no one appreciates a remake.” It will, however, star David Hasselhoff, who will appear as himself.
The Rock has described the movie as “great fun, and Rated R”. Johnson posted the below Baywatch-themed video of himself and Rohrbach to Instagram yesterday (January 4), throwing in a bit of ‘Hotline Bling’ for good luck as the pair dressed for the part and got down to running on the beach:
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the plot of the Baywatch movie follows a straight-laced lifeguard (The Rock) who teams up with a young hothead (Efron) to save their beach from falling into the clutches of an oil tycoon.
The movie is expected to take a comic approach to revitalising the ’90s series, with production due to get underway in the coming months.
The role will be biggest Rohrbach’s biggest movie appearance to date, though she will also appear in Woody Allen’s next film.