TV: Breaking News! GOB Out, Iceman in as New Voice of KITT for NBC's Knight Rider Remake

Arnett responds to the loss of the prized role of KITT...

In a conundrum worthy of his previous TV show Arrested Development, Will Arnett has had to drop the role of the voice of the talking car KITT on the new version of NBC's 80s cheesefest Knight Rider. The role will now be taken by Val Kilmer (!), himself no stranger to the 80s and/or cheese.

It turns out Arnett's automotive vocal talents were already spoken for -- by General Motor's GMC Trucks division. With Knight Rider now aligned with Ford (KITT is a Mustang now -- Pontiac no longer makes the Trans Am) it wouldn't do to have Arnett's distinct gravelly tones adorn a product with a competitor's logo.

Arnett had already wrapped his work on Knight Rider.

How's Kilmer's Voice? This cheesy, 80s scene from the underappreciated Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker comedy Top Secret has the answer:


Also, here's the intro for the original Knight Rider...in German! Dig the Nietzscheian sound of "...ein auto, ein komputer, ein mann..." And yes, series creator Glen A. Larson's theme song is one of the best TV themes ever. As friend-of-the-blog Joni pointed out, with this voiceover it sounds like a Kraftwerk song!

TV: Mr. Feeney Out, Gob in as TV's new K.I.T.T.

Arnett practices his voice throwing

Mr. Amy Poehler, also known as Will Arnett, will give voice to the new version of K.I.T.T. on NBC's sure to be crap-tastic TV movie revival of Knight Rider. He steps into the shoes of the formidable William Daniels, a.k.a. as Mr. Feeney on the sickly sweet sitcom Boy Meets World, fussy super surgeon Dr. Craig on medical drama St. Elsewhere from 1982-1988 and of course Benjamin's father in the classic film The Graduate. Still, his career highlight, as it will be for Arrested Development and Let's Go to Jail star Arnett, will be voicing a super crime fighting car.
Also changed is K.I.T.T.'s brand identity from Trans Am to Mustang. Oh yeah, Hasselhoff will appear as old Michael Knight.

Here's William Daniels in one of my favorite films, The President's Analyst: