It looks like Sam Beckett won’t be joining Ben Song on his time-travels.
With the new Quantum Leap launching imminently, fans have been holding on to the hope that original series star Scott Bakula will return. The actor played original leaper Dr. Sam Beckett across five series and his story never concluded; the show ended on a (misspelt) title card which simply stated: “Dr. Sam Becket never returned home.”
However, the new series makes an explicit link to the character in its premise, which begins:
“It’s been nearly 30 years since Dr. Sam Beckett stepped into the Quantum Leap accelerator and vanished. Now, a new team, led by physicist Ben Song (Raymond Lee), has been assembled to restart the project in hope of understanding the mysteries behind the machine and the man who created it.”
Now, despite the revival’s narrative link, it seems unlikely that it will directly resolve the mystery of Sam’s fate – at least onscreen and in person.
Scott Bakula’s message to the Quantum Leap fans
Scott Bakula has taken to social media to address the show’s fans and confirm he has “no connection with the new show, either in front of the camera or behind it.” He goes on to reveal that he was sent a script that featured Sam and that it “…was a very difficult decision to pass on the project”.
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He concludes by wishing the new cast and crew “… good luck and happy leaping!”
Since his time on Quantum Leap, Bakula has worked extensively in film and television, with lead roles in shows such as Star Trek: Enterprise and NCIS: New Orleans. His next series was to be NBC’s ranch drama Unbroken, however that didn’t make it past pilot stage.
“The offer is out there”
As various members of the new Quantum Leap production have suggested, the door is still open. New star Raymond Lee recently told TVLine:
“We would love to have him. There is no Quantum Leap without Scott Bakula. I hope he can watch the show and sign off on it, and one day agree to be on it. But the offer is out there.”
The new Quantum Leap launches stateside on NBC (and streams on Peacock) on Monday, September 19th.
There’s still no definite confirmation of a UK broadcaster. However, our fingers remain crossed for Peacock (whose content is available via Sky). Of course, we’ll keep you posted.