![Zachary Knighton and Stephen Hill during the Magnum P.I. panel at Comic-Con 2018 Zachary Knighton and Stephen Hill on Rebooting ‘Magnum P.I.’ [Video] Zachary Knighton and Stephen Hill during the Magnum P.I. panel at Comic-Con 2018](https://telltaletv.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/112983_1167b-730x487.jpg "Zachary Knighton and Stephen Hill during the Magnum P.I. panel at Comic-Con 2018 | Tell-Tale TV")
Zachary Knighton and Stephen Hill on Rebooting ‘Magnum P.I.’ [Video]
At San Diego Comic-Con, we had the opportunity to speak with Zachary Knighton and Stephen Hill about their roles in the upcoming reboot of Magnum P.I., premiering this fall on CBS.
Knighton plays Orville “Rick” Wright, a character portrayed by Larry Manetti in the original series. Hill stars as Theodore “TC” Calvin, who was played by Roger E. Mosley in the 1980s show. The two spoke with reporters in a press roundtable during the convention.
While the reboot will change many things about the original series, Knighton said that his and Hill’s characters are perhaps what remains the most unchanged. But the new series will certainly be distinct from the original in many ways.
“The pilot has a much more high-octane action bent to it. There’s some really amazing stuff — it looks like a movie, pretty wild,” Knighton said.
The show also won’t be your standard procedural, at least in terms of tone.
“The difference from any typical procedural [is that] there are some really funny episodes. The first episode is heavy, it’s intense […] all this crazy stuff happens. The second episode — I don’t think these are spoilers — we’re looking for a fish. A stolen fish,” Knighton revealed.
![Zachary Knighton of Magnum P.I. at Comic-Con 2018 Zachary Knighton and Stephen Hill on Rebooting ‘Magnum P.I.’ [Video] Zachary Knighton of Magnum P.I. at Comic-Con 2018 in San Diego, Ca on July 19, 2018. Photo Cr: Francis Specker/CBS é2018 CBS Television Studios. All Rights Reserved.](https://telltaletv.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/112983_0811b-683x1024.jpg "Zachary Knighton of Magnum P.I. at Comic-Con 2018 | Tell-Tale TV")
![Stephen Hill of Magnum P.I. at Comic-Con 2018 Zachary Knighton and Stephen Hill on Rebooting ‘Magnum P.I.’ [Video] Stephen Hill of Magnum P.I. at Comic-Con 2018](https://telltaletv.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/112983_0829b-683x1024.jpg "Stephen Hill of Magnum P.I. at Comic-Con 2018 | Tell-Tale TV")
Times have also changed since the original series aired from 1980 to 1989, and the reboot has adapted certain elements to reflect that.
“Nowadays there are some things that you can’t really get away with that I think the old Magnum got away with, in terms of the little misogyny that you could get away with in the ’80s that you can’t really do anymore,” Hill explained.
“And I think that is a good thing. It gives us a fresh take, and women are more respected in a certain way than they were. Which is why we have a woman playing Higgins now, which is awesome.”
Watch the full interview with Zachary Knighton and Stephen Hill here:
Check out all of our coverage of San Diego Comic-Con here. There is a lot more to come!
The Magnum P.I. reboot will premiere Monday, September 24 at 9/8c on CBS.
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Caralynn Lippo
Caralynn is a freelance writer and editor, but most importantly, she is a diehard TV addict. A few of her current favorites are Mr. Robot, You're the Worst, iZombie, and The Vampire Diaries. She also writes about TV for Romper, The TV Junkies, and TV Fanatic.