Soap opera "Dallas" to return to the screen

Posted by elena On Monday, July 11th 2011 in Entertainment

Classic American soap opera "Dallas" is set to return to the screen. The new series will air next summer in the United States and will feature ten episodes. Original stars Larry Hagman, Linda Gray and Patrick Duffy will reprise their roles, but they will be joined by new names Josh Henderson, Jesse Metcalfe, Jordana Brewster, and Brenda Strong.

A preview of the new "Dallas" series, which is planned as a sequel to the original, will be shown on Monday, 11 July, on US channel TNT. The producers decided to make the new series after they ordered the script for a pilot. The revamped soap will feature some of the old characters, but will concentrate on the younger generation.

A spokesman for the TNT network said that they had considered making an "updated version" of the soap for several years, but only decided to go ahead with it when reading the "outstanding" scrip for the pilot episode, written by Cynthia Cidre. He added that it was "incredibly exciting" to see a "dream cast" playing characters both old and new. Cynthia Cidre has worked both in film and television and wrote the screenplay for the 1992 movie "Mambo Kings".

"Dallas", the original series, aired on CBS between 1978 and 1991. It was centred on the rich Ewing clan and their feuds and business intrigues. Along with Larry Hagman, Linda Gray and Patrick Duffy, the soap opera starred Victoria Principal, Jim Davis and Barbara Bel Geddes. In spite of the return of some of the original stars, the focus of the new series will be on the younger generation. The new "Dallas" series will be centred on the rivalry between cousins John Ross, the son of J.R. Ewing, and Christopher, the son of Bobby Ewing.

John Ross will be played by Josh Henderson, who had the same part, as a child, in the original "Dallas", and has since appeared in "Desperate Housewives" and "90210". Jesse Metcalfe, best known for his role in "Desperate Housewives", will play Christopher. Actress Jordana Brewster, who starred in "The Fast and the Furious" movies, will play Elena Ramos, a new character who gets in a love triangle with Christopher and John Ross. Larry Hagman, Linda Gray and Patrick Duffy will reprise their roles as J.R., Sue Ellen and Bobby. The new series is scheduled to air next summer in the United States.