Quantum Leap (1989-1993) was one of the best-loved television series of its contemporary time. The sci-fi series was inherently comically wacky and eccentric and advocated a strong message despite its rather quirky and lighthearted tone. The genre coupled with the advantages of delivering new adventures with almost every episode quickly catapulted the series to a household favorite.
Also read: TV Shows That Were Saved By Fan Protests
Now, 30 years later, NBC Asian America has brought the beloved series back to life as a reboot of the original, starring Korean-American actor Raymond Lee.
Quantum Leap Reboot: What it Offers After 3 Decades
The series begins with a physicist leaping through space and time to land inside another person’s body for a temporary period during which he must save the day or the person who is in need of it. The end goal, it seems, is to find a way back home, which the original series’ protagonist never did, as per the ’93 season finale. However, the reboot series although sticking closely to the genesis plotline doesn’t take place in a completely new timeline. It’s the events taking place decades after Dr. Sam Beckett (Scott Bakula) vanished.
Also read: 10 Cult-Classic Sci-Fi Shows Audiences Do Not Find Interesting Anymore
NBC’s televised sci-fi drama leaps through patchwork in time to land in increasingly difficult and impossible situations. Having lost most of his memory, Dr. Ben Song (Raymond Lee) traces his way back to the source cause for his unauthorized leap. His path, marred by adventures, provides a delicate balance between crime procedural drama and a rediscovery of one’s familial heritage. Martin Gero, showrunner, defines the reboot to be about “jumping into other people and having an experience that is maybe different than yours.”
Also read: Popular Actors Who Found Success In TV Shows Instead Of Movies
Raymond Lee Faces Backlash As Asian-American Protagonist
The original Quantum Leap had actors Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell as its lead duo. But the reboot drastically shifted focus to feature Korean-American Raymond Lee, who was perfect for producers Deborah Pratt and Donal Bellisario’s requirements of a nonwhite actor as the lead. Gero added,
“We knew we wanted a diverse actor for Ben, because they had done the two white guys’ version of it before, and part of modernizing this is telling a broader story… It’s a way for us to tell an incredibly specific story about what it’s like to be a Korean immigrant in a way that he’s also kind of learning about it [again as he goes].”
But, the cultural diversity in the revival has been received negatively by a faction of the demography who now believe that Hollywood is intentionally using nonwhite actors to further their “wokeness” among the millennial crowd.
The new quantum leap won't stand a chance not good looking enough really an Asian will not work here
— Anita Cummings (@AnitaCu90957660) September 18, 2022
Rebooting a classic show with minorities for its lead actors is cultural appropriation. But there's nothing wrong with cultural appropriation so go for it.
— Karl Crary (@Crary76) September 20, 2022
The new Quantum Leap guy is Asian.
Don’t tell Tucker Carlson.🤭— Shawty 🇺🇸🌊🇺🇦 (@ShartSheriff) September 15, 2022
Wtf? So Quantum Leap’s Asian now?
— Generalissimo Snake (@PunishedVoryn) September 12, 2022
For Lee, however, the opportunity that this platform provides is indeed a leap for him and his community. Speaking of what his role in the series could bring to the audience, he claims that the representation “does so much for not only this industry but every industry — for anybody to see themselves being represented in a position of leadership and [as] a person who is actively going out and doing good and saving lives.”
Quantum Leap is now streaming on NBC.
Source: NBC News
