The 1983 comedy “Mr. Mom” is being revived as a digital series by its home studio, MGM, as part of a new partnership with Walmart-owned streaming platform Vudu.
Vudu made the announcement Wednesday at the NewFronts West just days after revealing its partnership with MGM, which is intended to create a slate of short-form scripted content adapted from a library of classic intellectual property that offers the opportunity to serialize everything from James Bond to “The Pink Panther.”
Execs explained the choice of “Mr. Mom” as an attempt to capitalize on the nostalgia parents have for the entertainment choices they grew up with, and their desire to share that content with their children.
“As parents, we want to share with kids the TV shows and movies that we grew up with,” said Julian Franco, head of AVOD content and advertising. at Vudu. “They made us feel something. the Reality is we want our kids to feel the same thing too.”
“Mr. Mom” was a hit film that featured Michael Keaton as a father who bumbles his way through stay-at-home parenting when his wife (Teri Garr) returns to the work world. “Mr. Mom” was written by John Hughes, who would go onto create classic 1980s fare including “Sixteen Candles.”
The series will be a continuation of the baby Megan’s story, when as a grown adult, she wants to go back to the work force and her husband must go on parenting duty.
Of “Mr. Mom,” Franco commented, “We thought it would be a good first step for us. We’re going to reboot it. IT’s an American classic. Anybody that remembers it loves it.”
The series will be featured on Movies On Us, the name of Vudu’s ad-supported platform. It’s intended to cater to Walmart’s family-friendly audience and feature “shoppable” ads.
MGM senior VP of digital platforms Sam Toles joined Vudu on stage to share his enthusiasm for the project. “There is definitely a hunger and a passion for established IP,” he said.