Knight Rider, the show about a talking car fighting crime alongside Michael Knight, is coming back. And this time, it’s a movie. But it isn’t returning alone. According to reports, it’s bringing along a few ’80s friends, including Airwolf and The Six Billion Dollar Man. That’s a crossover we’ve waited over 40 years for.
Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg, and Josh Heald, the brains behind Cobra Kai, are attached to the Knight Rider screenplay. But while that alone would make fans sit up (because these are the people who know how to respect a legacy while giving it a punchy, modern spin), some of their plans might shake up the franchise.
According to Tachyon Pulse Podcast, the new KITT might not even be a Pontiac Firebird. Instead, it could be an electric car. “Obviously, the old Pontiac Firebird was a classic. They’re going to have to use an electric car,” the source explains. Options being kicked around include the Tesla Roadster, the Dodge Charger EV, and Chrysler’s Hion concept. The Charger EV seems to have the best shot at rocking that iconic red scanner light, which is basically the visual signature of the series.
But the new KITT won’t just look cool, it’s going to be packed with AI tech, tying into a broader universe that could include Airwolf and The Six Billion Dollar Man. Apparently, all three franchises could eventually cross paths, fighting AI villains in a shared story world. Think of it as a Marvel-style team-up with AI vehicles and machines.
The Knight Rider story itself is being kept under wraps, but, according to the Tachyon Pulse Podcast, the AI angle is central to the plot and the universe. I mean think about it, the classic KITT was basically the dream car of the ’80s, a black Trans Am with AI (brains and personality). The new version will be smarter, faster, and more integrated with today’s tech. And while Michael Knight’s origin story was already wild (a cop shot in the face, surgically rebuilt into a Hasselhoff lookalike), it set the tone for a show where absurdity and coolness coexisted perfectly.
Then there’s Airwolf. The original series followed a supersonic military helicopter disguised as a civilian chopper, led by Stringfellow Hawke, Dominic Santini, and Michael Coldsmith Briggs III. At its peak, the show ran four seasons, spawned toys, video games, and tie-in novels. Tragically, the real Bell 222 helicopter used in the show crashed in 1992. A reboot could tap into today’s aerospace tech, unmanned aerial vehicles, and VTOL innovations, while leaning on modern CGI for stunts that wouldn’t be feasible in the ’80s. There’s no need to risk real helicopters when you can make Airwolf do things that would make the original stunt coordinators weep with joy.
The timing feels right. AI is everywhere, streaming platforms are hungry for recognizable IPs, and audiences are ready for high-octane action with a nostalgic twist. Whether it’s KITT rolling out in a new electric body or Airwolf slicing through the sky in CGI glory, the legacy of ’80s TV meets today’s technology could actually work. And if the music (Stu Phillips for Knight Rider, Sylvester Levay for Airwolf) comes back, that alone will sell a lot of preorders for your eyeballs.
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