Fox Greenlights American Version of AbFab
Posted on January 23, 2009
Fans of the hilarious British series Absolutely Fabulous will be intrigued to hear that Fox has finally greenlit an American version of the series. Original series creator and star Jennifer Saunders will produce.
The new "AbFab" is based on the original, which revolved around the boozy exploits of fashion publicist Edina and editor Patsy, both of whom face off with Edina's square daughter, Saffron. Jennifer Saunders wrote and starred in the original "AbFab," an is an executive producer on the U.S. edition as well. She's joined by scribe Christine Zander, who's writing the U.S. edition.The new version is set in L.A. We're glad Jennifer Saunders is on board, but we do have doubts. The original derived much of its un-pc humor from Patsy's eating disorder, as well as her fondness for alcohol, drugs and younger men. And don't even get us started on Edina. Somehow, we don't see that going over too well on Fox at 8:00 p.m. It was a product of its time, so the question is: can it be updated for 2009 audiences? And second, why in the world isn't this being produced on cable where the restrictions will be relaxed?Zander and Saunders are EPs with Ian Moffitt, Mitch Hurwitz, Eric Tannenbaum and Kim Tannenbaum. Sony Pictures TV is producing with Tantamount and BBC Worldwide Americas. "AbFab" ran for 36 episodes in the U.K., and has developed a cult following here via regular airings through the years on outlets including Comedy Central, PBS and Oxygen.
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