Angela Lansbury 'Murder She Wrote' Reboot To Star Octavia Spencer

Oscar winner Octavia Spencer is expected to lead a reboot of Angela Lansbury's iconic series "Murder, She Wrote," with NBC reviving the old CBS show.

Deadline.com reported that the NBC reboot will give "a brand new take" on the series that featured a novel author turned amateur detective.   

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"Described as a light, contemporary procedural in the vein of 'Bones' or 'Fargo,' it follows a hospital administrator and amateur sleuth (Spencer) who self-publishes her first mystery novel," Nellie Andreeva told Deadline on Thursday. "Set in a day where sensational headlines inundate the news, this woman's avid fascination with true crime leads her to become an active participant in the investigations. . . . I hear Lansbury has been approached to be a part of the reboot."

Spencer is also promoting her debut novel "Randi Rhodes, Ninja Detective: The Case of the Time-Capsule Bandit."

The series would be Spencer's first television series role as a regular since winning a best supporting actress Academy Award last year for the movie "The Help." She is being considered for the same award for her role in this year's independent movie "Fruitville Station," according to the New York Daily News. 

Spencer recently completed production on the movie "Black And White" opposite Kevin Costner and is about to begin filming the James Brown biopic "Get on Up."

"Octavia and I are both huge true crime buffs, amateur criminologists, and fans of Angela Lansbury," Alexandra Cunningham, the former executive producer of "Desperate Housewives," told Deadline.com.

Cunningham will write and co-executive produce the reboot.

"To get the chance to reimagine 'Murder, She Wrote' for a dynamic and multi-faceted actress like Octavia is a thrill and a pleasure," she said.

Angela Lansbury earned 10 Golden Globe and a record 12 Emmy nominations for her performance as Jessica Fletcher. The original "Murder, She Wrote" ran from 1984 to 1996 on CBS. 

Lansbury, 88, has appeared in Jim Carrey's "Mr. Popper's Penguins" in 2011. She has also kept busy on Broadway, performing in "Gore Vidal's The Best Man" in 2012 along with "Blithe Spirit" and "A Little Night Music" in 2009.

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