Tremors reboot starring Kevin Bacon gets pilot order at Syfy

The Tremors franchise is showing renewed signs of seismic activity.

Syfy announced Monday that a small-screen reboot of the 1990 monster movie has been ordered to pilot, with original star Kevin Bacon reprising his role and executive producing.

Written by Andrew Miller, who will also serve as showrunner and an EP, the pilot picks up two and a half decades after the giant worms known as Graboids devastated the town of Perfection, Nevada. When the creatures return, the town’s best hope once again lies with Valentine McKee (Bacon), but this time, he’s grappling with age, alcohol, and a delusional hero complex.

“This is the only character I’ve played that I’ve ever thought about revisiting,” Bacon said in a statement. “I just got to thinking, where would this guy end up after 25 years? Andrew Miller has a fantastic take on it and we hope to create a show that will be fun and scary for fans of the movie and folks that have yet to discover it.”

He added, “Let’s kick some Graboid ass!”

The long-gestating reboot hails from Universal Cable Productions and Blumhouse Television, with David Schiff (Southpaw) serving as an executive producer alongside Bacon and Miller.

The original Tremors was released by Syfy’s corporate sibling Universal Pictures and previously spawned four straight-to-video sequels and a short-lived TV series.

Bacon’s involvement is particularly cool as the actor is returning to the franchise after 25 years. Bacon, who recently starred in Fox’s The Following, only appeared in the original Tremors (and doubtless turned down ample opportunities to be involved with the sequels). Bacon will reprise his character Valentine McKee and the setting will return to the fictional Nevada desert town of Perfection.

Earlier this year Bacon said he’d love to revisit the character. “I’d love to do something else with Tremors and revisit the character 25 years later,” he said. “Part of what’s great about that movie is there are next to no digital effects. The monsters are done with puppetry, and it’s still off, funny and scary — it’s a cool accomplishment.”