Kelsey Grammer Says Frasier Revival Is “Ready to Go” for Possible Mid-2020 Premiere

A Frasier revival is “ready to go” and waiting to be picked up for a possible mid-2020 start, according to star Kelsey Grammer. In the latest update on the gestating revival that Grammer has been developing since 2018, once putting its odds of moving forward at 40-60, Grammer says the next chapter of Frasier will explore scrambled psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane in “his next iteration” with a focus on the relationship with his son, Frederick (originally portrayed by Trevor Einhorn), and Frasier’s continuing search for a romantic partner. Revisiting the role made famous by Cheers and 11 seasons of his spinoff series is “definitely going to come,” Grammer said, explaining the revival could begin filming in the spring for a possible late summer 2020 debut.

“We’ve hatched the plan, what we think is the right way to go. We’re sort of on standby a little bit working on a couple of possible network deals that we’re circling,” Grammer said on In Depth with Graham Bensinger. “And Frasier is sort of in a second position to that at this point. So, there’s still stuff going on. But a revisit to Frasier’s world is, I think, definitely going to come.”

The project has been put together and is “ready to go,” Grammer added. “We just have to staff it and find somebody who wants to give us money for it. You never know. The business is funny, it’s a funny world, but I think there’s a couple of outlets who would actually be interested in revisiting [Frasier].”

The original series ended with Frasier facing the next chapter of his career after exiting his post as a radio psychiatrist at Seattle station KACL. After accepting a new job that would relocate him to San Francisco, the series finale ended with Frasier in Chicago to reconnect with girlfriend Charlotte (Laura Linney).

In true Frasier fashion, the relationship was not long-lasting.

“We’ll see how people respond to it because it’s not going to be in the same place. It’s not going to be in Seattle. It’s not going to be the same Frasier,” Grammer said. “It’s going to be the man in his next iteration, and hopefully that’ll be something people like watching. I think it will be funny. It’s still his search for love … I think that’ll always go on with Frasier.” This new version will also be about “a connection with his son,” Grammer added.

Part of Grammer’s being drawn back to Frasier was the revival of contemporaries Roseanne, Murphy Brown and Will & Grace.

“I always wanted to be honest. I didn’t think Frasier should be in exactly the same place as he was 12 years ago. So we’ve changed that,” Grammer said, adding he was attracted by the idea that “there might be another act in [Frasier’s] life.”

“People used to ask, ‘Could you have done it for more time?’ And I’d say, ‘Well, yeah, life is always surprising.’ People go on, you get up the next day, and it’s a different life, isn’t it? So I always thought you could tell stories about that,” he explained. “We just ended it because contracts were up, and 11 seasons seemed like the right amount of time for it to be on the air, and so we ended on a high, and what we thought was a good story point to end on, and a hopeful stepping-off place. All those things were enough to propel him into a new kind of life, and so this new idea would be based upon the fact that he was still alive and still trying things, and still embarked on an adventure. I think, ideally, that would be how it would work out.”

Frasier ran for 264 episodes across 11 seasons between 1993 and 2004, winning 37 Emmys.