Summary
Baywatchis one of the most widely recognizable shows of all time, but the series almost ended after season 1.Baywatchwas a cultural phenomenon throughout the entire run from 1989 to 2001, and it has remained a part of the zeitgeist ever since thanks to reruns, and a rebooted movie. However, despite being incredibly popular, the show always faced challenges, with negative or mixed reviews, and criticisms around the show’s central themes.
While the show ultimately ran for 11 seasons, with 242 episodes in the main show, and multiple spin-offs, the show faced challenges. Things could have ended before they’d ever really begun whenthe show was canceled by NBC after the first season. Fortunately, some insightful individuals had the foresight and vision for the project to bring it back, and the results were far better than anyone could have imagined.
Where Baywatch’s Yasmine Bleeth Is Now
For fans of Baywatch, Yasmine Bleeth is probably as memorable a name as David Hasselhoff or Pamela Anderson. So whatever happened to her?
Baywatch Was Canceled Due To Low Viewership & Studio Trouble
Season 1 Failed To Get A Good Response
When the first season began airing in 1989, the show was a hard sell for audiences who felt the story was thin, and the production lacked story. Regardless of the star power that David Hasselhoff, fresh from his stint asMichael Knight inKnight Rider, brought to the show,Baywatchwas a bust.NBC was disappointed with the low numbers tuning in, and accordingly, they canceled the show.
However, the numbers were not the only deciding factor in NBC’s decision to cancel the show, as the network was going through an intense period of change. After more than 40 years serving as the home of Major League Baseball, the network lost the rights to CBS. They were also experimenting with several shows that they struggled to properly support, such asBaywatchandSeinfeld, which both had discussions regarding cancelation, but whileSeinfeldwas kept on,Baywatchwas canceled in favor of other content(viaRolling Stone).
David Hasselhoff Was Instrumental In Bringing Baywatch Back
The Hoff Saved The Show
Once NBC canceled the show, it appeared as though the fate ofBaywatchwas sealed. However,Hasselhoff had a bigger vision forBaywatchand his character, Mitch, and with his own money,he bought the rights forBaywatchfrom NBCand syndicated the show (viaThe Guardian). With the Hoff having serious skin in the game, the stakes were high to get the show back up and running, and ensure that its second incarnation would become a success. And, somehow, against all odds, and in the face of constant negative reviews,Baywatchbecame a hit show.
The third season introduced Pamela Anderson, and at that point, the number of viewers skyrocketed, ensuring that the hit show was no longer struggling to keep studios happy. Regardless of any negative backlash,the show found its audience, and it continued to be an institution that grew in popularity for many years. Without Hasselhoff’s intervention at that early stage, the show would have disappeared into the dark dusty corners of TV archives, with no more than a handful of people to remember it, but instead, it grew to become something that no one could have accurately predicted.
Baywatch TV Remake In Development After 2017’s Poorly-Reviewed Film Killed Initial Plans
A Baywatch television remake is officially in the works at Fremantle after the poorly-received 2017 film adaptation initially de-railed such plans.
Baywatch Ultimately Became A Huge Success After Returning
And to put that success into perspective, it’s important to note that this show about attractive lifeguards running around a beach grew to shatter viewing records that have yet to be repeated. In 1996, a few years later, when the show returned to TV, and onceAnderson became an established figure onBaywatch, the show reached an incredible peak in popularity. At this point in time,Baywatchwas being watched by 1.1 billion people worldwidein 144 countries (viaGuinness World Records), and broadcast in dozens of languages. Literally airing in every continent barring Antarctica, at a time when the world’s total population was shy of 6 billion (viaWorldometer).
To be clear, that is twice the number of people that tuned in to watch the moon landing in 1969. And in Baywatch’s case, this was not a one-off event, but a regular weekly show that was able to pull live viewing figures that have yet to be matched, and thanks to the rise of streaming over broadcast TV, they likely will never be beat. Regardless of the content,Baywatchis undeniably a cultural phenomenon. If NBC got their way, and Hasselhoff didn’t step in, one of the most popular shows of all time would have been forgotten and discarded.
Baywatch
Cast
Baywatch is a drama series that follows the lives of dedicated lifeguards patrolling the beaches of Los Angeles, combining action, adventure, and personal stories as they protect the public from various emergencies.
