Michaela McManus has joined the cast of NBC's reboot pilot for The Rockford Files, playing detective Kate opposite David Boreanaz as Jim Rockford. The role marks a reunion for the actors from SEAL Team. The project updates the classic 1970s detective series with a contemporary storyline.
NBC is developing a reboot of the 1970s detective drama The Rockford Files, with David Boreanaz starring as Jim Rockford, the role originally played by James Garner. The pilot, helmed by Mike Daniels of Sons of Anarchy fame, follows Rockford as he is newly paroled after serving time for a crime he did not commit. He returns to his work as a private investigator in Los Angeles, using his charm and wit to solve cases, only to find himself targeted by local police and organized crime in his pursuit of legitimacy.
Michaela McManus, known for roles in Law & Order: SVU, One Tree Hill, The Vampire Diaries, Awake, Aquarius, You, The Orville, and The Village, has been cast as Kate, an East Hollywood detective. According to the official character description, Kate's romantic relationship with Rockford becomes complicated after he publicly accuses fellow officers of framing him.
This casting brings McManus and Boreanaz back together, as she previously portrayed Alana Hayes, the wife of Boreanaz's character Jason Hayes, in the CBS/Paramount+ series SEAL Team. McManus currently stars as Nicky in Fox's Memory of a Killer opposite Patrick Dempsey.
The reboot is described as a contemporary update on the classic series. No premiere date has been announced, and the project awaits a series order from NBC.
