Quantum Leap Reboot Adds Top Gun: Maverick Actor as Lead

After decades of being off of our television screens, Quantum Leap is expected to return for a new generation, with a revival of the beloved sci-fi drama in the works at NBC. Fans of the long-running series have been curious to see how it would be updated in a modern context — and on Friday, we learned the first cast member in that new venture will be. According to Variety, Top Gun: Maverick and Kevin Can F*** Himself star Raymond Lee has been cast in one of the project’s lead roles. Lee will be playing Dr. Ben Seong, who is described as a scientist and a man of faith, who is a world-renowned physicist working on the Quantum Leap project.

The new Quantum Leap takes place 30 years after Dr. Sam Beckett (Scott Bakula) stepped into the Quantum Leap accelerator, which allowed him to “leap” into people’s bodies across different eras, and vanished. Now a new team has been assembled to restart the project in the hopes of understanding the mysteries behind the machine and the man who created it. Talks have reportedly been underway about Bakula potentially returning to his role.

“That show is very special to me, obviously, so I would wish whoever did it luck,” Bakua told TVLine back in 2021. “I mean, the idea of walking in another man or woman’s shoes is so relevant and so important right now. We’ve become so divided in our world that the ability to cross that line of politics and just deal with the humanity and the individual person who’s sharing a moment on the planet with you is really relevant.”

He added: “There was also a quaintness about the show, because it had this period feel because Sam traveled anywhere within his own lifetime. That made it feel a little old fashioned, but I would hope that they get the truth of it and the sentiments of it right, and not try and make it slick. Sam was this naïve kid who just happened to be a brilliant scientist who stumbled on something and all of a sudden was thrown into all of these different lives and worlds and people and situations that he never could’ve imagined growing up in. I would just hope that they would try and keep that, but you know, I don’t know what they’ll do.”

What do you think of Lee joining the cast of the Quantum Leap revival? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!