When original Pretender adventures disappeared from the airwaves in 2001, fans were still left with a lot of questions. Fortunately, the show’s creators haven’t forgotten about them and are working on a way to bring the series back, albeit in a different form.
The Pretender debuted on September 19, 1996 and aired for four seasons on NBC. In the series, Michael T. Weiss plays the lead character, a beyond-genius “Pretender” named Jarod. As a young boy, Jarod was abducted from his parents and trained by The Centre to be able to flawlessly integrate himself into any profession or lifestyle. As an adult, Jarod discovers that the organization is using him for no good and he escapes. Jarod travels the country trying to help those in need while managing to stay a step ahead of his captors. When the series ended on May 13, 2000 after four seasons, it looked like Jarod, Miss Parker (Andrea Parker), and Ethan (guest Tyler Christopher) didn’t survive a huge train explosion.
Fortunately, the cliffhanger was later resolved. The Pretender was picked up for syndication and ran successfully on cable station TNT. That success paved the way for two television movies that aired in January and December 2001. When the second movie ended, there were still many questions left unanswered. Fans petitioned for more TV movies but they didn’t happen.
Pretender creators Steven Long Mitchell and Craig Van Sickle have long said that the show was a labor of love and that they’re interested in continuing the Pretender story. A few months ago, the creators suggested that the show might be continued online.
In a recent interview with Sci Fi Wire, Mitchell and Van Sickle shared a few more details. “We created the show The Pretender, and we’re working on bringing that back in a whole new form, in a digital form and in a digital platform,” Mitchell shared. This would allow viewers to be able to tap into more information and be able to follow the progress of the new stories.
A new format doesn’t mean however that they’re forsaking the series’ star or the existing Pretender storylines. Van Sickle notes, “We had breakfast with Michael… he just finished up a play out here in New York. I guess kind of the best thing we can say is that we have a timetable of within, hopefully, the next five or six months that we can have something really unique and different out there.” Stay tuned! 
need more pretender im so hangin out to see michael again and what happens in the show i watch all the seasons and movies over and over again but have to have more. please please bring it back
I would love for the Pretender to be revived!! It was such a great original show and had such potential…..I have been trying to track down the series on DVD for Region 4 but no luck so far. PLEASE PLEASE bring it back!!!!
Was a driver on the road, when I first saw the series. Loved it for the intregue. towards the end it was full of chaos. Not knowing who to believe, what to believe or who to trust. Almost like politics or just like it. Never got to watch the Profiler, which was on the show twice. bought the series and movies that followed. need more.
Why was a show of such originality canceled? C,mon NBC bring back The Pretender with the original cast.
This show MUST COME BACK!!!!! I loved the characters and the story lines. T.V. is so bad right now and full of reality crap. The writing and acting were incredible. I loved the dynamic interplay between Jarod, Sydney, Ms. Parker and Broots. We don’t get T.V like this now. SHAME-SHAME-SHAME on NBC for canceling the show and leaving all those loose ends. I remember how all of the girls in my dorm would faithfully gather every Saturday night just to watch what Jarod will do next. GET MICHAEL T. WEISS BACK!!!!!!!!! PLEASE
Please bring back “The Pretender!” I was devestated when this completely orignial show was cancelled. I’d love to see it back; I want to know how it ends. Does Jared finally reunite with his family? Is the Centre forced to pay for its crimes? I need to know! P.S: FU Miss Parker; you’re no lady. Money can’t buy class.
Great show. I’d love to see it back.
Anything with Andrea Parker in it I am all for, and she was exceptionally hot in this series (and still is exceptionally hot!). It was a great series, and I was not aware until now that there were followups, so I am going to go out and find them to watch. The only thing is Michael Weiss does not look so good these days (unless I just saw bad pictures of him) and they may have to do some work to get him up to snuff. Anyways, hope something comes of the talk.
Michael & Andrea are great together. Sort of the opposite of the X-Files, and we all know how popular that series was.. mainly because they didn’t get together as a couple. Jarod & Miss Parker have left us with way too many unanswered questions. DALLAS & KNOTS LANDING both came back and finished up with great success, Dallas ended while Knotts litteraly came full circle to start over. Who took The Pretender off the air, anyway…. The same Knuckleheads who canceled, Perry Mason, The Beverly Hillbillies, & Star Trek? Well we all know Perry had to come back…. and so… Read more »
I have just finished watching all four seasons and absolutely loved all.I also have both movies but have yet to view them(can hardly wait) I do so wish that “The Pretender” would return to T.V. ( T.V. is soooo bad now!!!) I don’t know how I missed watching the series when it first aired. I just love Jarod and Miss Parker. It was a GREAT show!
Please bring “The Pretender” back with Michael T. Weiss either with new episodes or movies. I faithfully watched “The Pretender” with my mom and fully enjoyed every episode. We were both disappointed when it was canceled but continued watching the reruns; like other fans we also still have unanswered questions. Over the years, we’ve watched Jared (Michael T. Weiss) appear on “Crossing Jordan,” and a couple of movies, one entitled “Bones,” as well as other “Pretender” cast members on other shows including Jarod’s brother, Kyle (Jeffrey Donovan) who has had 2 TV shows, “Burn Notice;” and “Touching Evil” (canceled after… Read more »
I have been a fan of The Pretender since the first episode. I have seasons 1-3 and both movies and am ordering season 4 soon. Ihave seen so many of my favorite shows canceled without tying up loose ends and answering important questions. None have bothered me more than when the same happened to The Pretender. Please if you can’t bring back the series at least do another movie to finish out the story.
Stop stringing us along. Give us a really good movie that ties up all the loose strings. If after that you want to continue, start new plot lines or create a new Pretender if Michael Weiss becomes unavailable. Eventually a lot of us will just tune-out and turn-off to never answered questions. My sister is now into “Torchwood.” She grew tired (and angry) of waiting for the truth about Jarod’s family to be revealed.
Please bring Jarod and the cast back it help make sense of a crazy world we live in at least on TV Jarod sometime wins against the bad guys .Right Now we feel kind of hopeless and disabled military veteran who the government lie about his records and makes me feel like it is the the centre seeing Jarod wins some helps me emotionally. Also the trash that is on there now sucks he would go to the top in my mine.god bless. My whole family views reuns on dvd we can almost quote lines it is time foe something… Read more »
Please please please bring back this show! Come on EP’s, get it going! Of all the stories that I’ve read and the dates in which the EP’s commented that something might be happening, it should have happened six months ago! Now that Michael is in Impressionism (depending on how long that lasts…), it may not happen for a while but I still keep hoping that some day soon… Funny how the spelling of The Center on the scrolls is “The Centre”….deliberate by the EP’s? I have an idea…. Please film it in Australia! YAY!! Melbourne is a good spot for… Read more »