Cameron Fisher (’21), Staff Writer
With shows like American Idol, Will & Grace, That’s So Raven, and most recently Jersey Shore being resurrected onto our T.V. screens, it’s easy to feel like you’ve hit rewind during your latest finals study break. However, primetime lineups aren’t the only place you’ll find old favorites in 2018. Movie theatre marquees are filled with familiar names like The Incredibles and It, and even Netflix, the most popular modern streaming service, has released a follow-up series to 90s sitcom Full House. Almost every major form of programming has turned yesterday’s most popular shows and movies into today’s most buzzed-about reboots, so what do we make of this apparent reboot culture?
On the one hand, reboots provide us with something so many of us crave—nostalgia. Whether we’re using nostalgia to distract us from daily stresses or just to bring us back to times when internships and Maymesters weren’t part of our summer plans, we’re making reboots undeniably popular, and the proof is in the numbers. Millions of viewers are tuning in each week to see their favorite shows rebooted, as evidenced by Roseanne’s premiere, which was the largest of any comedy show in four years. Because reboots are so successful, production companies are likely to keep capitalizing off of our nostalgia for seasons to come. As long as they yield record-breaking ratings and profits, viewers will get to experience their favorite characters and storylines all over again. While this may seem like a win-win situation, the immense amount of airspace taken up by reboots has serious implications for new creatives trying to break into the industry. Many actors, directors, and writers that return for reboots already have established careers thanks to their original shows, whereas many talented people hoping to fill those exact positions still face the difficult task of making a name for themselves. Furthermore, there’s an abundance of original content being released online and on-screen. In 2017 and 2018 alone, we’ve seen some groundbreaking new shows and movies especially from black creatives, like Jordan Peele’s Get Out, Donald Glover’s Atlanta, and Lena Waithe’s The Chi.
Weighing the negative impacts of reboots on current creatives won’t be able to stop their dominance on the market any time soon, but it should inspire change in how we think about our viewing habits. After reboots bring you to the end of memory lane, consider watching a new Netflix original or independent film because the content of the present is fresh, full of potential, and just as deserving of support as our favorite shows and movies of the past.
