‘Rockford Files’ Reboot Sets NBC Release Date, Launches Jim Rockford Hotline

NBC has announced when David Boreanaz’s reboot of “The Rockford Files” will premiere, giving the classic detective series a return to television. It will debut after an NFL broadcast before moving to its regular weekly slot, and fans can call a new hotline that echoes the original show’s answering-machine message.

The premiere airs on Saturday, 2 January, at 8pm ET/5pm PT, with streaming on Peacock the following day; the series moves to Thursdays at 8pm ET/PT from 7 January. The hotline, (760) JIM-ROCK, features a message from Boreanaz and offers text updates. The reboot follows James Rockford, newly paroled after being wrongly convicted, as he investigates cases in Los Angeles. The original series, starring James Garner, ran on NBC from 1974 to 1980 and later returned in eight TV films.