ABC moves forward with a TV pilot continuing the story of the Will Smith surveillance thriller Enemy of the State.
It appears that the 1998 Will Smith-starring suspense thriller Enemy of the State will be getting a sequel or sorts two decades in the making. However, rather than theaters, plans for said sequel to the acclaimed, profoundly-prescient surveillance thriller will instead manifest on the small screen as pilot for ABC.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, ABC has committed to an Enemy of the State television pilot. Rather than rebooting the 1998 film, the pilot will follow-up on the film’s story some 20 years later, depicting the ordeal of three new characters stuck in dilemmas ripped right out of contemporary headlines teaming an NSA spy charged with leaking classified intelligence, a described “idealistic” female attorney and a “hawkish” FBI agent. Together, they work to expose an apparent conspiracy that could unravel the fibers of global powers.
The plot seems to maintain the motif of the 1998 Enemy of the State film directed by the late Tony Scott, which depicted the ordeal of a man named Robert Clayton Dean (Will Smith) who, after being given a disc containing damning evidence, unwittingly becomes the target of a corrupt NSA Agent (Jon Voight) who’s using criminal influence in Washington to push a privacy-invading surveillance bill. Consequently, powerful figures with much to lose from disc’s contents drag Dean’s name through the mud, rendering him a fugitive. However, with the help of ex-NSA communications expert Brill (Gene Hackman), the conspiracy is exposed to the world, derailing the surveillance bill in the process.
Almost akin to CBS's sequel series to the film Limitless, Enemy of the State reportedly received a “hefty” pilot commitment from ABC, possibly telegraphing the scope of its ambitions. Auspiciously enough, a prolific producer of hit television shows and big screen blockbusters in Jerry Bruckheimer – who was involved with the 1998 film – will resume his duties as an executive producer on the TV pilot along with Jonathan Littman and KristieAnne Reed though Jerry Bruckheimer Television, working with ABC Studios. Additionally, Morgan Foehl, who wrote the script to the 2015 Chris Hemsworth-starring hacker drama Blackhat is onboard to write.
While Enemy of the State may not be Will Smith’s best-known effort, it was a $250.6 million global hit and carried themes that are more relevant today than ever as the topic surveillance becomes an increasingly problematic variable in everyday life. Thus, it will be interesting to see if there is enough topical fuel to sustain a television series.