Fox orders 'Lethal Weapon' pilot starring Damon Wayans

Fox is pulling the trigger on a pilot order for a Lethal Weapon TV series — plus has filled one of the project’s two starring roles.

Damon Wayans Sr. (Rodney, In Living Color) has been cast as Roger Murtaugh, one half of the Los Angeles cop duo in the small-screen version of the hit movie franchise.

Here’s the pitch for the series: “When Texas cop and former Navy SEAL Martin Riggs (not yet cast) suffers the loss of his wife and baby, he moves to Los Angeles to start anew. There, he gets partnered with LAPD detective Roger Murtaugh (Wayans), who, having recently suffered a ‘minor’ heart attack, must avoid any stress in his life.”

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That setup is slightly different from the premise for the original 1987 film starring Mel Gibson and Danny Glover, which had Gibson and Glover as Vietnam War veterans on the LAPD and Glover trying to avoid complications as he was on the verge of retirement (“I’m too old for this s–t,” as the famous line goes).

The original Lethal Weapon was a box office hit that went on to spawn three sequels, the last being released in 1998. McG (Terminator Salvation) is set to direct with Matt Miller (Chuck) as showrunner. Dan Lin and Jennifer Gwartz are executive producers.