‘The Rockford Files’: David Boreanaz Finds Next Role After ‘SEAL Team’ in NBC Reboot
What To Know
- David Boreanaz has been cast as the lead in NBC’s pilot reboot of The Rockford Files.
- Boreanaz will be taking on the role played by James Garner in the ’70s original.
David Boreanaz has a history of long-running shows. He played Angel on Buffy the Vampire Slayer for three seasons, then on his own spinoff for five. Then he starred as FBI Agent Seeley Booth on Bones for 12 seasons. He followed that with seven seasons as Jason Hayes on SEAL Team, which ended in 2024. Might The Rockford Files be next?
Well, so far, the reboot of the classic series has only received a pilot order, but David Boreanaz has been cast in the lead role. He’ll star as James Rockford, the witty, world-weary, and chronically broke private investigator whose charmingly gruff exterior masked a strong moral core. The original series aired six seasons, from 1974 to 1980, and starred James Garner.
Now, in this new, contemporary take, NBC teases, “Newly paroled after doing time for a crime he didn’t commit, James Rockford returns to his life as a private investigator using his charm and wit to solve cases around Los Angeles. It doesn’t take long for his quest for legitimacy to land him squarely in the crosshairs of both local police and organized crime.”
The series comes from writer Mike Daniels, who executive produces with Carl Beverly and Sarah Timberman. Chris Leanza is a co-executive producer. The series is produced by Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group.
When TV Insider spoke with David Boreanaz in December 2024 for the DVD release of SEAL Team‘s final season, another broadcast network show wasn’t on his mind. “I’d probably shy away from a network series these days just because of the time and the amount that’s ordered. It’s just a lot of work,” he’d admitted to us.
But in general, looking ahead to what could have been next for him then, he said, “I don’t sit down and go, ‘That’s going to be the next thing.’ … I don’t sit back and say, ‘Well, this is the next series I’m going to do.’” Rather, he takes a look at if “it makes sense for me and also the character and what I would like to do.”
What do you think of David Boreanaz being cast as The Rockford Files lead for the reboot? Let us know in the comments section below.
















